


Starting At the Finish

by KorrasLegend



Category: Avatar: Legend of Korra
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Drama & Romance, F/F, Korrasami - Freeform, Korrasami is Canon
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-15
Updated: 2021-02-21
Packaged: 2021-03-12 16:20:26
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 9
Words: 32,140
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28763226
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KorrasLegend/pseuds/KorrasLegend
Summary: Asami is a CEO by day and a Street Racer by night. Korra is a Seattle PD Detective working out of the Bellevue Precinct. They seemingly live separate lives until their worlds collide in more ways than one...
Relationships: Bolin & Opal (Avatar), Korra & Asami Sato, Korra/Asami Sato, Korra/Mako (Avatar), Mako/Asami Sato
Comments: 64
Kudos: 118





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my very first fic! I appreciate any feedback constructive or otherwise. :)

The rain beat heavily against the floor to ceiling windows in her high-rise apartment. Traces of the day had all but vanished, leaving only the faint glow of moonlight that barely peaked through the never-ending sea of storm clouds. In the distance Asami could see flashes of lightening dancing across the sky, and moments later heard the rumble of thunder that followed. Leaning her head against the window, she gave a deep sigh and watched the fog of her breath expand and then disappear on the glass. This wasn’t what she was expecting at all. She was hoping there would only be scattered showers tonight, not a full-blown thunderstorm. 

“Well so much for letting off some steam,” she said. 

She’d been looking forward to the race all week. A win tonight would’ve solidified her position as the number one rookie on the circuit. But with current weather conditions being what they are, it was only a matter of time before she got the text from her handler informing her that the race was canceled.

*Ding*

“Right on cue,” she muttered, as she reached into her back pocket to retrieve her burner phone.

Her assumption confirmed, she threw the phone on her couch and leaned her head against the window once again. 

To say that Asami was having a rough week, would have been an understatement. Even though she managed to get a lot of work done at the office this week, it wasn’t without its challenges. Future Industries was gearing up to host their second annual Engineering Expo, next month, and she had all of her top engineers hard at work with building the most innovative prototypes their brilliant minds could imagine. However, with her top minds working on prototypes for the expo, it meant that she had to spend more time in the garage, to make sure their ongoing projects didn’t suffer due to the change in resources. If she were to be honest with herself, the new time commitment was actually a welcome change of pace. It reminded her how much she loved to build things, as opposed to being chained to her desk and buried under a mountain of paperwork. Although there was a part of her that ached to spend her days building things, she knew she couldn’t afford to give into her desires. She had just gotten the company back on its feet, and there were people depending on her. She couldn’t afford to risk the success of the company just to play hooky in the garage whenever she felt the urge. So, if she had to work a few late nights here or there to make up for time lost in the garage, then that’s what she was going to do. 

Still, all of her responsibilities were taking a toll on her, and she desperately needed to take the edge off. She briefly thought about installing the new engine that she received earlier this week for her bike, but the idea only made her want a race even more. She released an exasperated sigh and glanced toward the front door. Asami didn’t know what to do. She was beginning to feel that familiar dread swirling around in her gut whenever she found herself alone and without a suitable distraction. The dread of being left alone with her thoughts, and finally having to confront her misery head on, to uncover a truth that she was not ready to broach with herself yet. She quickly pushed that train of thought to the back of her mind.

No. 

Not tonight, not after the week she’s had. Surely there was something else that she could do. Her gaze fell to the floor and then paused on her running shoes, which were placed neatly under the coat rack. Running was obviously out of the question, but maybe heading down to the gym and unloading a few combos on the heavy bag wasn’t such a bad idea. She crossed the living room to the hall closet and hesitated. Should she ask Bolin to meet her there?

Aside from being her personal trainer, Bolin was also one of Asami’s best friends. Sparing with him in the ring while also telling him about her week, sounded like the perfect release to a shitty week. The way Asami saw it, a call from her would probably end the barrage of text messages that she’d received from him this week, trying to get her in the gym. Bolin was completely aware of the amount of stress she was under this week, which is why he’d been trying to get her into the gym to work some of the stress off. 

Grabbing her phone, she found Bolin’s number and called it.

“Oh, wow she lives! I was thinking I would have to send a search party out after you.”

Asami smiled into the phone. 

“Hey Bo, you know how crazy it gets for me around this time. I’m sorry I haven’t been able to reach out sooner.”

“Hey, no worries, I know you’re a workaholic. So, what’s up? What are you doing right now?”

“Well, I was actually thinking about heading to the gym to do a few rounds on the heavy bag but then I thought…I’d much rather do a few rounds in the ring instead.”

“Ahh, so I guess that’s when you thought of your totally ripped and hot best friend.”

“No that’s when I thought of you, Opal doesn’t box.”

“Ha Ha…I guess I walked right into that one huh?”

Asami giggled, “well you do make it so easy. So how about it? Are you game?”

“Yeah, sure. Meet you there in fifteen mins?”

“Great. Oh, and could you do me a solid and tell Opal to cancel my 8 o’clock tomorrow?”

“HEY OPAL! ‘SAMI SAYS TO CANCEL HER 8 O’CLOCK TOMORROW!”

Asami, pulled the phone away from her ear. She hadn’t expected Bolin to relay the message in this way, but on the other hand it was a very Bolin thing to do. 

“WHAT?......I DON’T KNOW!....... WHY DON’T YOU TEXT HER OR SOMETHING WE’RE ABOUT TO HEAD OUT TO THE GYM!”

“Was that really necessary?” Asami asked deeming it safe to pull the phone back up to her ear.

“Of course, it was, otherwise I would’ve forgotten. So... You. Me. Gym. Fifteen?”

“I’ll be there.”

“Cool. See ya in a bit.”

Asami hung up the phone; a wave of relief flowing through her. This night might not be such a bust after all. Smiling to herself, she grabbed her gym bag, phone, and car keys and walked out of the door.


	2. Chapter 2

“RISE AND SHINE DETECTIVE!”

Korra jolted awake, a piece of drool covered paper stuck to her cheek. This would be the third time in a row she fell asleep while working late at the station.

“Sorry Chief I--“, Korra started to apologize, only to be met with the sight of her partner Kuvira doubled over in laughter.

“You’re such a pain!” Korra shouted, throwing a crumpled piece of paper at her. 

“I have no idea why you insist on pulling these all nighters at the station, when you have a perfectly comfortable bed in what appears to be an abandoned apartment across town.”

Korra sighed and rubbed at her temples. 

“Come on Vira, you know why. I think there’s more to this case than meets the eye. The dots are there, it’s just a matter of connecting them.”

Kuvira, stepped closer and leaned on Korra’s desk, arms folded.

“Is this about your breakup with Mako?”

Korra shot Kuvira a deadpanned look.

“Hey I’m just asking! Ever since you guys broke up you’ve been pushing yourself pretty hard lately. As your partner and your friend, I had to ask.”

Korra’s expression softened. Up until two months, ago, Korra had been dating Mako for a year. Although they cared for each other very deeply, Korra wasn’t as hurt by the breakup as she initially thought she’d be. To the public eye, they were the perfect couple. They were both top detectives in their respective precincts, both incredibly passionate about the job, and even though they both worked insane hours, they always found the time to spend with one another. Although, if Korra were to be honest with herself, deep down she knew that her relationship with Mako wouldn’t last long. As close as they were, there were times were Korra felt so…alone. Try as he might, Mako never really understood Korra, and it was because of this that Korra felt as though she had to keep parts of herself hidden from him. 

“You’re too emotional Korra…” Shaking her head at the memory she gazed up at Kuvira again.

“I appreciate the concern, but no it’s not about him. I just don’t think we’re done with this case like we originally thought. I mean the deeper I dig the more I seem to find.”

Kuvira, took a deep breath and released it.

“Listen, I get that you’re obsessed with the case, but even you have to admit that it’s better to take a break from it every once and while. If you ask me, it’s easier to connect the dots after a good night sleep.”

Korra smirked and nodded at her partner in agreement.

“…And…” Kurvira added with a wince.

“If you’re not gonna go home to sleep could you at least go home to shower? You’re starting to develop an odor.”

Korra glared at Kurvira, and then gave her shirt a sniff. 

“Ugh, ok maybe you have a point.”

Kuvira jumped off of Korra’s desk with a clap of her hands. “So glad we agree! Now get the hell out of here before the chief sees you.”

Korra rolled her eyes, as she got up from her desk. As much as she didn’t want to admit it, Kuvira had made another good point. Running into Lin Beifong after her third all nighter this week did not sound appealing at all. It’s not that the chief was difficult to work with, it’s just that the woman was tough as nails. However, anyone who’s worked with her long enough, knows that it’s Lin’s no-nonsense approach that keeps her officers alive, and her station running like a well-oiled machine. Korra had already gotten an earful earlier in the week for spending the night at her desk. The chief had made it perfectly clear to Korra (and the rest of the station for that matter), that burning both ends of the candle not only put herself at risk while out on the streets, but it put her partner at risk as well. 

“Sleep deprivation dulls the senses, and clouds the mind” she’d said, “a deadly combination when dealing with criminals, and if they don’t kill you I WILL!” “If I catch you sleeping at your desk again, you’ll be chained to it for three months!”

Not wanting to relive that particular humiliation again, Korra quickly rose out of her chair. As she stuffed her laptop in her messenger bag, she heard a familiar voice at the front desk.

“Hey Leslie, can you do me a favor and hold all my calls today? I’m only accepting calls from Kya and Mayor Raiko today I’ve got a mountain of paperwork to get through.”

Korra and Kuvira stared at each other in horror.

“She’s never here this early!” Korra hissed.

“Try to sneak out through the garage I’ll distract her…Go! Go!” Kuvira whispered as she shooed Korra away.

Korra immediately crouched behind her desk and made a mad dash to the desk next to her being sure to stay low. Meanwhile, Kuvira made her way to the front of the station and stopped in the entryway of the main floor.

“Morning Chief!” Kuvira said with a smile. “Aren’t you the early bird catching the worm this morning.”

Lin narrowed her eyes at the detective, already sensing something amiss.

“Detective Kuvira,” Lin said in a clipped tone. “I haven’t had my coffee yet, so whatever it is you’re trying to butter me up for will have to wait until I’ve had my first cup.” 

Lin made a move to step past Kurvira, but Kuvira stepped in front of her. Lin glared at Kuvira, not at all in the mood for games at this time of day. Kurira simply smiled at her. 

“Come on Chief, do you really think I’d try to butter you up for something? The next promotion cycle doesn’t begin for months”.

Suddenly there was a loud crash coming from the main floor. Lin all but pushed Kuvira to the side to see where the commotion came from. Kuvira rolled her eyes and followed slowly behind her already knowing the source of the commotion. When they entered the room, they saw Korra lying on the floor tangled in phone cords, with a pile of paperwork scattered at her feet. Kuvira put her head in her hands and shook her head.

“Well, well, well….” Lin started, as she stepped closer to Korra with her arms folded across her chest.

“Chief I can expla—”

“SAVE IT!” Lin held up a hand to Korra motioning for her to stop. “I thought I made myself perfectly clear to you that this station is not your personal Airbnb.” 

Korra opened her mouth to speak but Lin raised her hand again motioning for her to stop before she even began.

“Korra how many times do I have to tell you that burning yourself out like this is only going to get you killed out there?”

“Chief I’m sorry, but there’s just something about this case, there has—”

“I don’t want to hear another FUCKING word about that FUCKING case! I could have sworn that your case load had nine other cases, not just this one CLOSED case that you are clearly obsessing over.”

“Just hear me out chief. The raid that we did three weeks ago would have set the Triple Threats back for months. Viper and his grunts should be lying low in whatever holes they crawled into, all while the lesser gangs battle it out over who’s going to be the new king of the hill. That’s what SHOULD be happening, but it’s not. In fact, nothing is happening. The streets are quiet, we haven’t seen anything drug related on this side of the lake in weeks. The only major change we’ve seen in the area is a jump in speeding tickets.”

Lin placed a hand over her eyes and shook her head.

“You’ve got to be kidding me. In all of my years on the force, I thought I’d never see the day a detective complain that their beat is too quiet, especially with NINE other cases on their plate”

“Chief –”

“Korra it’s clear to me that you are incapable of letting this case go on your own…”

“But Chief...”

“...and so effective immediately you are suspended.”

Korra widened her eyes in horror. Suspended? What the hell happened to desk duty? She gulped and then licked her lips. 

“For how long?”

“Three months,” Lin replied.

Korra stared back at Lin like a deer in headlights. A three-month suspension? How did this escalate so quickly? And what the hell was she supposed to do now? Shocked at the sudden turn in events, Kuvira quickly stepped in front of Lin to try to stick up for her partner.

“Now hang on Chief,” Kuvira said, as she cautiously held up her hands to show that she came in peace. 

“Don’t you think that’s a little harsh? Maybe desk duty or something? She shouldn’t be punished for following her gut. I mean wasn’t it you that told us that being a detective is all about instinct?”

Lin sighed. “You’re right detective. However, there’s a fine line between following your instincts and obsessing, and I feel that your partner has crossed this line. I mean really Korra, when is the last time you showered?”

Korra looked down in embarrassment, a slight blush coloring her cheeks. 

“Exactly. You’re not even taking care of yourself, so how in the world could I trust you to take care of Kuvira out there? Even if you were on desk duty, I wouldn’t dare trust any of the paperwork that came from your desk because I doubt very much that you’d be able to form a single coherent thought.”

Korra just sat there dumbfounded. This is exactly the interaction that she wanted to avoid. Lin was right, as usual. It didn’t serve Korra or anyone else to go on the way that she has with this case. Operating on a dangerously low tank of energy; and putting herself and others at risk was just a ticking time bomb waiting to happen. However, none of this meant that Korra was wrong. Something about this case just didn’t add up, but Korra decided that it would be better to look at it again with fresh eyes. Korra slowly brought her eyes to meet Lin’s, hoping that she portrayed a look of sincerity.

Lin released a deep sigh as she shook her head and folded her arms.

“Listen kid, maybe three months is a little harsh. I’ll give you three weeks of UNPAID time off that you will utilize immediately.”

Korra and Kuvira both released a sigh of relief. It still wasn’t ideal, but it was better than being suspended.

“I appreciate that Chief.” Korra said with a smile.

“Yeah, don’t thank me yet, the instant you come back you are going to be chained to that desk until I can trust you to be out on the streets again.” 

Korra nodded, “that’s fair enough Chief.”

After a lingering moment, Lin unfolded her arms and made her way to her office and shut the door. Korra and Kuvira shared a look.

“Thanks for sticking up for me,” Korra said with a smirk.

Kuvira extended her hand to Korra, offering to help her off the floor.

“Pfft. I didn’t do it for you I did it for me. Who do you think was going to have to take your caseload for those three months? Three weeks is a bit more doable, although you still owe me.”

Getting up, Korra dusted her pants off and gave Kuvira a crooked grin.

“Yeah, I know. Just let me know when you think of—”

“Gym. Tomorrow night, after you’ve gotten some sleep. I’ve got a match coming up this weekend, and I need a sparring partner.”

“That was quick. You had that cued up and ready to go, didn’t you?”

“From the moment I saw the pool of drool on your desk,” Kuvira replied smiling.

Korra smiled back and shook her head.

“I guess I’m in no position to argue. See ya then.”

Korra grabbed her coat and messenger bag and headed towards the front door.

“See you around Pigpen!” Kuvira shouted as she watched Korra walk past the reception desk.

Without turning around, Korra lifted her middle finger and walked into the sunlight.


	3. Chapter 3

“Good Morning Ms. Sato, my don’t we look well rested this morning. I guess that extra hour of sleep came in handy huh?”

Asami, gave her assistant a deadpanned look, but it quickly melted away once she saw a coffee cup emerge from her desk.

“Please tell me this is for me.”

Opal rolled her eyes, “of course it is! Do you honestly think I want to put up with crabby Expo Sami without caffeine?”

Asami rolled her eyes in return as she brought the coffee cup to her lips. The instant the hot liquid hit her lips she closed her eyes and hummed in appreciation. She already felt the morning cobwebs in her brain dissipating as waves of warmth flushed throughout her body. When she opened her eyes, she caught Opal staring at her with a knowing smirk on her face.

Asami rolled her eyes again.

“Oh, come on I’m not that bad before an Expo, am I?”

Opal quirked an eyebrow at her.

“That depends, will you fire me if I say yes?”

“Possibly...”

“Then, no, absolutely not. However, there’s a certain personal trainer sitting at home right now nursing his busted lip and bruised ego who might disagree with me.”

Asami smirked at Opal’s words. Bolin was not a light weight by any stretch of the imagination. He stood at 6’1’’ and weighed in at 215lbs of pure muscle. Under normal circumstances, Bolin would have been able to take anything Asami could dish out in the ring. However, given the rough week that she’d had, on top of her canceled race, Asami had a lot of pent-up aggression that unfortunately found their release on Bolin’s face. Not only had she given Bolin a minor laceration across his bottom lip, but she also managed to knock him down twice within the first two rounds. Seeing Bolin’s stunned face as Asami danced around the ring in victory was priceless, and definitely made up for her canceled race.

“Ok fair enough, but on the bright side, now that I’ve blown off some steam, I should be a little more tolerable to be around.”

Opal shrugged. 

“Eh, we’ll see how long it lasts. Don’t forget you’ve got that meeting with Mayor Raiko at ten to go over the proposed designs for the new transit system, followed by a meeting at eleven with a potential investor, and then at twelve you’ve got another session with Bo in the gym before heading down to the garage for the rest of the day.”  
Asami released a deep breath, “is there any way I can cancel the ses—”

“Nope,” Opal interrupted. “Sorry boss, but I was told that under no circumstances should I allow you to cancel or move your standing session with Bolin.”

Asami gave Opal an incredulous look.

“You and your husband are aware that you both work for me, right?”

Opal tilted her head from side to side considering Asami’s words.

“We are,” she said finally. “BUT need I remind you that the reason you hired us as your assistant and personal trainer respectively is because you knew that as your best friends, we wouldn’t allow you to get so lost in work that you completely go off the deep end?”

Asami narrowed her eyes at Opal as she walked past her desk and into her own office in defeat. “I hate you both”, she muttered.

Opal erupted in hysterical laughter as Asami shut the door.

“We love you Asami!”

***

“You’re looking a little slow there Sami, pick up the pace!”

Asami raised her middle finger to Bolin as she summoned the last bit of energy in her tank to tackle the final hill in their 3-mile run back to the office. As it turns out, Opal was right about her husband’s bruised ego. In lieu of their usual HIIT session, Bolin and Asami ran three miles to a nearby rock-climbing gym, where they climbed a Pro-level wall for what Bolin had described as “kicks and giggles”. It wasn’t her first-time rock climbing, in fact Asami would often accompany Bolin to this very gym whenever she was in the mood for a change in her workout routine. However, Asami only considered herself to be a decent climber, intermediate level at best. She was by no stretch of the imagination an advanced climber, not like Bolin. Of course, Bolin knew this and did not pass on the opportunity to rub it in Asami’s face. After climbing the 5.15 wall, Asami was completely out of breath and every muscle in her body ached. However, instead of calling an Uber back to the office, Bolin insisted that they run the three miles back as an added bonus to this blatant revenge workout. 

Bolin smiled as Asami reached the top of the hill.

“You know all things considered you’re actually doing a lot better than I thought you would.”  
Asami sparred him a deadpanned look.

“Don’t tell me you’re suddenly feeling bad about this revenge workout of yours.”

Placing a hand on his chin, Bolin looked up at the sky pretending to think about Asami’s comment. After a minute or two, a wide grin stretched across his face.

“Yeah, you’re right I’m loving every minute of this. However, I legit thought you would’ve passed out after the climb. I was honestly expecting a little more push back from you after I suggested we run back.”

“You know me Bo”, Asami said between breaths, “I never back down from a challenge.”

Bolin chuckled and handed her a bottle of water. 

“You are indeed as stubborn as they come.”

Asami smirked at him before gulping down a large swallow of water.

“Hey! Take it easy!” Bolin exclaimed snatching the bottle from Asami, “I don’t want you cramping up on me when we’re only half a mile away from the office.”

Asami smiled as she wiped a few drops of water from her mouth. As grueling as the run was, it wasn’t all bad. It gave her a chance to plan out the remainder of her day. Even though her team had made amazing progress earlier in the week, they still had a lot of work ahead of them. Asami wanted to have the five remaining prototypes adjusted and field tested by the end of the week, so that she could confidently submit her designs to the admissions committee first thing Monday morning. She’d already come up with a list of names that would be perfect for the testing phase of each prototype and resolved to break them into mini teams based on their experience and expertise once they got back to the office. With the team leads she had in mind, getting the prototypes ready to go by Friday wouldn’t be a problem.

“You alright?”

Asami lifted her eyes to meet Bolin’s concerned gaze.

“Yeah, I’m fine, just going over my checklist for when I get back to the office.”

Bolin nodded his head in understanding, although his facial features harbored a look of disappointment.

Asami raised an eyebrow in confusion.

“Why the long face? Did you expect me to cough up both of my lungs instead of just the one?”

Bolin smiled and shook his head. 

“No, it’s not that, it’s just that I was hoping today’s workout would help you take your mind off of work for a while. I hate to see you so stressed-out Sami.”

Asami grabbed Bolin by the shoulders and looked him square in his green eyes.

“Bolin, that was probably the worst session we’ve ever had. I guarantee you the only thing that was going through my mind the entire time, was how much I hate you.”

Bolin pulled away from her grasp with a hearty laugh.

“Well then I guess I’ve done my job as your personal trainer,” he said with a smile. “But seriously is everything okay? When I got your call last night, I thought something might have happened. You never call me for a session, I’m the one that has to harass you.” 

Asami looked away from Bolin and nervously bit her lip. Should she mention the canceled race to Bolin? Neither he nor Opal were all too thrilled to find out that she’d taken up street racing. She’d initially told them that it was an unorthodox way for her to field test the new Sato Rovers that would roll out in the coming year. Bolin seemed to buy it, but Opal was skeptical. It didn’t make sense to her that Asami would risk her company and her reputation for a field test that could have easily been done on a racetrack. Knowing how much Bolin shared with his wife, she decided not to go down that road.

“Geez, I didn’t know calling one of my best friends for a quick workout would incite so much worry. Can’t a girl want to catchup with her best friend while simultaneously knocking him on his ass in a sparing ring?”

Bolin shook his head at the memory and blushed in embarrassment. 

Laughing, Asami placed a hand on his shoulder and gave her friend a sincere look. 

“I promise, outside of this Expo, there’s nothing else going on.”

Bolin met her gaze, he looked as if he wanted to press the issue further, but he simply shook his head and gave her a pat on the back.

“I don’t believe you, but I guess we’ll talk about it later, let’s get you back to the office.”

Relieved, Asami released a sigh, and resumed her run.

***

Thirty minutes later, Asami was freshly showered and scarfing down a well-deserved salad in her office. Not wanting to forget her plan for getting the prototypes field tested, she asked Opal to put a conference call on the books with her newly appointed team leads, so that they were all aware of her game plan for the rest of the week. As the call wasn’t scheduled for another hour, she took the time to stare out at the incredible view outside of her office window and get lost in her own thoughts.

While working out with Bolin, had proven to be a huge help lately, it still did nothing to ease the overwhelming feeling of loneliness that she tried so hard to bury deep inside. God, when did her love life become so pathetic? She hadn’t been on a decent date since…Mako maybe? Christ and that was six months ago. Shaking her head, she released a deep sigh. It wasn’t that Mako was a bad guy, in fact he was very sweet and a perfect gentleman. Whenever they went out, he opened every door, and pulled out every chair. He even made sure to keep her on the inside of the sidewalk whenever they went on walks to shield her from any oncoming traffic. Asami smiled briefly at the memory. No, he wasn’t a bad guy, he just didn’t know what the fuck he wanted. One minute he loved how independent she was, the next they were having a huge blowout about how he doesn’t feel needed. It was exhausting, constantly having to stroke his ego simply because he felt threatened by her strength and successes. Not to mention the sex was mediocre at best.

At the end of the day, they were right to go their separate ways. It had gotten to a point where she couldn’t stand to be in the same room with him for too long without feeling suffocated. Still, at least back then she had a warm bed to crawl into. 

She released a deep sigh and briefly allowed herself to wonder how Mako was doing. Maybe she could invite him over for dinner?

“No,” she said out loud to interrupt her train of thought. There was no way in hell that she was going to reopen that chapter of her life just so she wouldn’t feel lonely for one night.

“This is ridiculous,” she muttered to herself. This is exactly why she worked so much, to keep idiotic ideas like that from creeping into her mind. She needed a distraction; she needed a race. Struck by inspiration she unlocked the bottom drawer of her desk and pulled out her purse. After digging around for a few minutes, she retrieved her burner phone, and shot a text to her handler.

_When’s the next one?_

_Friday night. Fill you in on specifics the day of._

Asami released a breath she had no idea she was holding and dropped the phone back into her purse. 

Two days…she needed to hold out for two more days. Biting her lip, she picked up her personal cell, and shot Bolin a quick text:

_“Are we still on for tonight?”_

_“Seriously? After today’s workout? What are you a masochist?”_

Asami smirked as she punched in her reply,

_“IDK…maybe? Who do you talk to about that sort of thing? Is there like a hotline or something?”_

_“No idea, but I’m sure if we pull Opal into the chat, she’ll have you in the best care possible by the end of the week”_

_“Nah, I’m good. Who knows, maybe one day I’ll meet someone that’ll be totally into it”._

_“…That’s…kinda hot, do you think maybe I could watch? You know for research purposes.”_

_“…maybe we SHOULD invite Opal to this chat.”_

_“OBVIOUSLY, I’m joking!”_

Asami threw her head back in laughter as she read Bolin’s response. Smiling she typed in her reply:

_“LOL. Sure you are. So how about it Romeo? Meet me at the gym tonight at 8pm?”_

_“Yeah, sure thing Mrs. Grey.”_

Asami frowned at the phone in confusion.

_“Mrs. Grey?”_

_“Yeah…like Christian Grey? From 50 Shades of Grey?”_

_“Did you read that for research purposes as well?”_

_“BITE ME!”_

_“You’d like that wouldn’t you?”_

_“I’m ending this conversation now. See you tonight.”_

_“LOL. See you then.”_

Smiling she placed her phone in its original place on her desk and tapped on the spacebar of her keyboard to awaken her sleeping iMac. As much as she hated to admit it, Bolin had a point. Adding another tough workout to her day would only mean sore muscles in the morning. Still, she’d gladly take the temporary pain of stiff muscles, over the familiar pang of misery that reminded her just how lonely she was. 

Finally noticing the time, she pulled up her notes from the latest field tests and slipped back into CEO mode in preparation for her call.


	4. Chapter 4

Korra released a deep sigh, as she crossed the threshold of her apartment and closed the door behind her. Korra’s apartment was…cozy. On the wall to the left side of the door there was a mounted 40” tv, that hovered above a small entertainment center complete with a PS4, a cable box, and two rows of Blu-ray movies. Directly in front of the TV was a coffee table that held coasters, and a couple of remote controls. Behind the coffee table was a black leather couch, with a tribal quilt hanging across the back. On the right side of the couch was a black leather recliner with a single cup holder that still held a half empty beer bottle. On the right side of the apartment was the kitchen, complete with all black appliances, a breakfast bar, and a black trash can that sat on the other side of the stove. The sink was full of dishes, and Korra could have sworn that she saw a roach crawl over the top of a food-stained plate.

Shivering at the sight of a bug in her house, she took off her messenger bag and coat, and placed both items on top of the breakfast bar. She rolled up her sleeves and walked over to the sink to clean the dishes. A part of her was glad that the Chief kicked her out of the station. If anyone saw how dire her living situation was, they probably would’ve had her committed. Her apartment was beyond gross. As she began cleaning the dishes, her mind began to wonder aimlessly on the events of the morning.

She couldn’t believe how quickly things escalated at the station. Did Chief Beifong really intend to suspend her for three whole months? She’d worked with Lin for years, and in all of that time, she’d never seen her make a rash decision, nor give a punishment that didn’t match the crime. What had gotten into her? With her hands still submerged in the dish water, Korra’s entire body froze as realization hit her like a ton of bricks. Had she really gone that deep in the rabbit hole? Was she obsessing over the case? She took a moment to glance around her apartment. The living area didn’t look so bad, just an old beer bottle that needed to be recycled. No big deal. The kitchen, however, was another story. The trash was overflowing, the countertop was covered in unopened mail and case notes, and there was an odd smell coming from the fridge. Or was it the trash? Both? Whatever the source it made Korra want to gag. Taking a few steps back, Korra risked a glance into her bedroom. The bed hadn’t been made in days, and there were three piles of laundry on the floor that should have been done weeks ago.

“This is fucking gross,” Korra muttered out loud to herself. How had she let things get this bad? Shaking her head, she returned to the task of cleaning the dishes. “Guess I should be thanking Lin.”

Once she finished the dishes, she began sorting through her unopened mail. Once sorted, she put her important mail in a drawer next to the stove and forced all of the junk mail down into the overflowing trash can. When she saw more roaches emerge from the trash can threating to crawl over her hand, she jerked backwards with a shriek, nearly tripping over Naga’s food bowl, which she just now noticed was overrun with ants.

“Ugh! This is fucking gross!” Stumbling to her feet, she walked over to the sink and opened the bottom cabinet to grab the bug spray. As she sprayed the trail of ants covering her dog’s food bowl, she suddenly remembered her dog.

“Shit!” Grabbing her phone from her pocket she quickly shot a text to her mother:

_“Hey Mom! Sorry it’s taken so long to reach out! I’ll be over to pick up Naga tomorrow.”_

__

_“Hey sweetie. It’s no problem at all! Kuvira told me that you were in another one of your rabbit holes, so I figured Naga would be better off with me anyways. Did she give you the chili I saved for you?”_

Korra rolled her eyes and released an exasperated sigh. Already aware of the fate of her mom’s famous chili.

_“No, I didn’t. But you had to know it was a risk sending food by Vira, especially if it was your chili.”_

_“Well, I guess it serves you right for not keeping in touch with your mother. I mean honestly! How is it that I see more of Kuvira, than I do of you, and I’m your mother!”_

Korra winced at her mother’s words. She really had gone off the deep end. No matter how busy she got, she always made sure to keep in touch with her mother. Even if it was a simple text to say goodnight, she made it a point to keep the lines of communication open. Korra was completely aware of how risky her job was, and as such she was also aware of the toll it took on her loved ones. To wake up every morning and not know if that day would be the last day you talked to your daughter. Or worse, to receive a knock on your door expecting to be greeted with a smile, only to be greeted by an officer in uniform accompanied by a chaplain. Korra could only imagine the angst her mother must have felt every single day. Especially after dropping Naga off three weeks ago to take the lead on that drug bust. She must have been worried sick after not hearing from her for so long. If it wasn’t for Kuvira, going over to check on her, her mother probably would have sent the national guard out in search for her.

Smirking at the thought, Korra shook her head. “I guess I owe Vira for more than just saving my job.” Taking a deep breath, she tapped the screen of her phone to reply to her mother:

_“You’re right mom. I’m sorry to make you worry. Maybe we can catchup tomorrow when I come over to pick up Naga?”_

_“Sounds good sweetie. I’ll unthaw, the backup chili I set aside for you so that you can take it with you. ;) ”_

Korra smiled at the screen. 

_“You’re the best mom. See you tomorrow.”_

_“Take care sweetie.”_

Releasing a sigh of relief, Korra locked her phone and put it back in her pocket. She glanced over at the trail of carcasses in Naga’s bowl. Taking another deep breath, she armed herself with paper towels and cleaning products and got to work.

***

Four hours later, Korra had the apartment in pristine condition. She’d taken out the trash, washed and folded her laundry, and she’d even gone the extra mile to scrub her walls and floors. Feeling accomplished, she decided it was time that she addressed the other odor in the room.

She peeled out of her clothes and threw them in the hamper in her closet. Reaching above her head, she grabbed a towel, and wash cloth from the top shelf, and walked across the hall to her bathroom. She turned the water on making sure the temperature was set to its highest setting. While she waited for the water to heat up, she gazed at her reflection in the mirror. 

Korra could hardly recognize the sleep deprived creature that stared back at her. Her hair and skin were oily and grimy. Her bloodshot eyes had bags under them, and it could have been her imagination, but it looked like she shed at least 10lbs. Jesus, no wonder Lin kicked her out of the station, she looked like a ghost. Once the steam from the shower began to fog up her mirror, she stepped into the shower and let the scorching water wash over her body. Closing her eyes, she leaned her head back so that the water sprayed her face and neck, and then brought her head forward again, so that she could press her forehead against the wall. Sleeping at the station for three nights in a row, had finally caught up to her. Had she always been this tired? The initial plan was to work on the case a bit more after she got out of the shower, but if she was being honest with herself, she couldn’t form a single coherent thought. Knowing she wouldn’t last long, she proceeded to wash herself thoroughly and hopped out of the shower. 

After drying off, she headed into the bedroom and threw on her favorite SpongeBob pajama pants with a light blue tank top. After tying her hair into a bun, she turned off the light, closed her blackout curtains, and plopped onto the bed. Turning over on her back she stared at the ceiling and allowed herself to listen to the distant sounds outside of her apartment. Unable to fight the weight of her eyelids anymore, she began to drift off to sleep when the vibration of her cellphone against the nightstand startled her awake. Reaching over she grabbed the phone from her nightstand and rolled her eyes at the name that popped up on the caller ID. 

“Hello?”

“Hey. I’m on lunch break, I’m coming over to murder you in Mortal Kombat.”

“First of all, in what universe could you ever beat me in Mortal Kombat? Second, I’m gonna have to pass on that.”

“Come on! I know you’re not actually at home resting because quite frankly you’re way too stubborn for that.”

Korra couldn’t help but chuckle, unable to deny the truth in her friend’s words.

“Normally I would tend to agree, but it appears that I’m not as invincible as I thought I was.”

“Shocking.”

“Right? Makes me wonder what else in my life is a lie.”

“Well, I guess now would be a good time to come clean about eating the chili that your mom told me to give you.”

“Already know about it. Your BFF ratted you out.”

“What! How!? I specifically waited until I got home to eat it.”  
Korra snorted, “She asked if I got it, I told her no. Wasn’t hard to figure things out from there…”

“Darn. Well in my defense, this is Senna’s famous Chili that we’re talking about it. I mean did you really think it would last long, especially with you camping out at the station after the bust?”

Korra nervously fiddled with the drawstrings of her pajamas, and sighed into the phone, remembering her guilt from earlier.

“Yeah, I know,” she replied with a somber tone. “That’s exactly why I’m not mad. I owe you a lot Vira. Not just for sticking up for me today, but for keeping an eye on my mom when I’ve gone off the deep end.”

Feeling the familiar pang in her chest, Korra took a calming breath before continuing. 

“In case I’ve never told you before, thanks Vira, for everything”.

For a while, neither of them said anything. The silence was deafening, and Korra briefly wondered if she’d gotten too mushy. She was about to apologize, but then she heard Kuvira release a deep sigh.

“Do you remember our sophomore year in high school? After the crash?”

Korra’s body clinched at the memory. Of course, she remembered. How could she forget? Kuvira had come over that night after school to help her study for a chemistry exam. After their brains had turned into mush, they decided to camp out on the living room floor and watch movies for the rest of the night. They were thirty minutes into their movie marathon, when Kuvira got the call from her Aunt Suyin. 

While on their way home from dinner, her parents got into a head on collision with a 16-wheeler that had suddenly swerved into their lane. Her parents died instantly. She would later find out that the driver was DUI and had somehow gotten out alive with a few broken bones and bruises. 

Korra would never forget the bone chilling sound that left Kuvira’s mouth once she hung up the phone. Nor would she forget the anguished look on her face, as she curled into a ball and involuntarily rocked back and forth. Not wanting Kuvira to drive home in her condition, her mother called Suyin back, and informed her that she would be staying the night with them. Kuvira must have laid on that floor for hours, sobbing, screaming, and cursing God for turning his back on her parents. It was ultimately Korra’s mother who got her to calm down. Senna retrieved an old tribal blanket from the hall closet and wrapped it around Kuvira holding her close as she gently stroked her hair. Initially Kuvira resisted the contact, but Senna just held her tighter and began to hum an old lullaby from Korra’s childhood. Hearing the soothing melody, Kuvira let down her walls and instantly melted into Senna’s embrace. Relieved that Kuvira had finally calmed down, Korra had placed her head on Kuvira’s shoulder, and wrapped her arms around her mother and her friend, gently rocking them from side to side. By the time her father returned home from work that night, they were all huddled together on the living room floor sound asleep. 

A few days later Kuvira was released into the custody of her Aunt Suyin. While Kuvira and her aunt maintained a good relationship for the most part, Korra could tell that the transition wasn’t easy for Kuvira. In fact, it seemed as though Kuvira would have preferred to stay with her and her family.

Korra flinched when she heard a car alarm outside her apartment bringing her back to the here and now. She closed her eyes and leaned her head further into her pillow. When she opened her eyes again, she sat up in her bed and crossed her legs. “Yeah, of course I remember.”

“And do you remember how broken I was? Even after getting settled in with Su?”

Korra released a soft sigh.

“Yeah. When you came back to school, it was like you were a zombie. You would just sit in the back of the class, with this distant look in your eyes. Like you were barely holding it together.”

“That’s because I was. I had just enough in me to do what needed to be done. Get up, go to school, come home, repeat. Don’t get me wrong, Su was great. She was patient and understanding, and when I finally got to a place where I thought I could give more than the bare minimum, she was the one who kept me focused and disciplined. I will always be grateful to her for that…But…if I’m being completely honest, if it wasn’t for you, Tonraq, and Senna, I probably would have given into the depression completely. You guys were the only ones that treated me like a normal kid and not some damaged piece of glass that could shatter the instant someone made a wrong move. Even though my whole world had changed in the blink of an eye, you guys were always the one thing in my life I knew I could count on. The only thing in my life that hadn’t changed.”

Korra felt a lump in her throat. She wasn’t expecting their conversation to turn into this. She wasn’t expecting to relive these memories at all, let alone hear them from Kuvira’s perspective. At the time Korra wanted so badly to ask how she was doing at Su’s, and if there was anything that she needed. However, every time those questions threated to leave her lips; her mother’s words always came to mind. 

_“The worst thing you can do, when someone is grieving is to ask how they are. It’s a silly question that has an obvious answer. Not only that, but it’s also a question that only serves to make yourself feel good rather than the person who has just experienced the loss. Asking how they are, brings the loss back into the forefront of their minds, and forces the person to put on a brave face for the sake of manners. In the end, the only person who feels better after asking the question is you because you feel that you’ve done a decent thing, when in reality you’ve likely negated any progress that they’ve made that day by making them relive the memory. The best we can do is continue to be there for her as if her parents never left. We need to give her a sense of normalcy during this time, because for her, things are far from normal.”_

Korra smiled briefly but sadly at the memory.

Hearing Kuvira’s appreciation of her mother’s approach to grief, gave her confirmation that they had indeed given her friend what she needed at the time. The thought nearly brought tears to her eyes. Determined not to let her friend hear how close she was to breaking down, she cleared her throat and took another calming breath.

“Was it your intent to make me cry or were you going somewhere with this?”

Kuvira chuckled softly into the phone.

“You know me better than that. You know I hate all of this mushy stuff,” she released a deep sigh before continuing.

“The point is Korra, you and your family are the reason I was able to get through that tough time in my life. I’m the one that owes you something. Not the other way around… And besides Senna already told me that I’m a part of the family anyways, so this entire conversation is moot.”

Korra couldn’t help but laugh at Kuvira’s last statement. 

“Yeah, I guess I can see why she would say that. What with all of the epic arguments that she had to referee at her kitchen table.”

Kuvira practically howled into the phone with laughter.

“Oh, my goodness, those dumb debates! You remember the one we had about condiments?”

“Had? That debate is still ongoing to this day. I mean honestly Vira, who the hell puts ketchup on their chicken biscuit?”

“IT’S A UNIVERSAL CONDIMENT! KETCHUP PAIRS WITH EVERYTHING!”

“But a chicken biscuit though? Would you put ketchup on a biscuit without the meat?”

“No! that’s fucking gross! Everyone knows that condiments are used in association with the protein and NOT the bread.”

Korra sighed. Even though she was grateful for the subject change, she had no desire to get dragged into another epic debate with her friend. 

“You know what? I refuse to get into this with you. As a matter of fact, this argument has just reminded me that I’m fucking exhausted.”

“Fine, we can continue this conversation later on tonight.”

“Wait what? You said we were meeting up tomorrow night.”

“We are, but my fight got moved up to Friday night instead of the usual Saturday night, so I need you to come in tonight too.”

Korra rolled her eyes, “Fine. If it’ll get you off my phone, fine.”

“Great! Now open the door so I can play Gran Turismo while you sleep.”

Before Korra could respond, she heard a knock at the door. God why was her friend being so annoying! Sliding out of bed she made her way to the door and opened it. Kuvira, stood on the other side of it, hands in the pockets of her trench coat, and a huge grin plastered across her face.

“Hey Kor! Look at you! You look great! Did you do anything different?”

Korra glared at Kuvira before responding, “yeah I showered.”

“Damn! Amazing what soap and water can do to a person’s appearance… And now that you mention it, that mysterious odor has vanished as well. I’m so proud of you Korra!”

Korra narrowed her eyes in suspicion. Why the hell was Kuvira here? If she was really expected to hit the gym two nights in a row, then she needed to get some rest. Kuvira showing up like this delayed that from happening. Surely, she knew that. Whatever this was she thought it better to end it quickly. She wasn’t sure if it was Kuvira’s presence or the sleep deprivation, but she was starting to get really annoyed.

”Gee, thanks,” Korra replied sarcastically, as she stepped to the side letting Kuvira into the apartment.

Stepping through the threshold, Kuvira, kicked her shoes off by the door and walked further into Korra’s living room surveying the apartment.

“Damn Kor, the place looks great! I guess you came home and got right to work huh? I’m not even seeing the usual case files scatted across your breakfast bar. Everything looks so tidy and neat.”

Korra rolled her eyes and sighed, finally putting two and two together. 

“So that’s what this is about,” she said. “The chief wanted you to come over here to make sure I was actually resting and not obsessing over the case.”

Kuvira held up her hands in defense.

“Hey, I’m just following orders. I told Lin this was unnecessary. Given the number of hours you spent on this case it was only a matter of time before you inevitably crashed.”

Korra shook her head and headed to the kitchen. She was too tired to rebut.

“Do you want some water or something?”

“Nah I’m fine. I told you I’m on my lunch break, I stopped by Jason’s and picked up a club sandwich.”

“Cool. Well now that you’ve laid eyes on the place, do you still want to play Gran Turismo, or can I sleep in peace?”

“Oh no I was serious about Gran Turismo, you’re the only one I know that actually has the wheel and gas pedals for it.”

Korra shook her head again.

“Fine, just try to keep it down ok? Otherwise, you’re going to be looking for a replacement for your replacement tonight.”

Flopping onto the couch Kuvira gave Korra a smirk.

“Yeah, yeah, yeah, go on sleeping beauty, go get your beauty rest.”

Too tired to even spare Kuvira a glance, she made her way into the bedroom and closed the door. Flopping on to her bed once again, she closed her eyes and immediately fell asleep.


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guys! Thanks again for reading! I was a little nervous about posting this chapter so again any feedback constructive or otherwise would be greatly appreciated!

She woke up with a start. Her body curled into the fetal position as her eyes darted around the room to get a sense of her surroundings. The room was pitch black, but she could vaguely make out familiar objects. Her nightstand, her dresser, Naga’s bed in the corner, she was home. In her own room, lying on her own bed, and still very much on unpaid leave. She took deep calming breathes as she rubbed her eyes with the heel of her hands. Once the panic in her chest began to subside, she removed her hands from her eyes and stared up at the ceiling.

That was probably the best sleep she’s had in ages. Why the hell did she ever think it was a good idea to camp out at the station anyways? The realization went off like an alarm in the back of her head. Oh yeah, that fucking case. Taking another deep breath, she reached over to grab her phone from the nightstand. 5:45. That gave her roughly two hours or so before she had to meet Kuvira at the gym. It probably wouldn’t hurt to at least put her latest theories down on paper, right?

Biting her lip, she rolled out of bed and headed to the kitchen. When she got there, she was relieved to see that Kuvira had not left her apartment in complete disarray. She noticed the coaster that was still wet from Kuvira’s soda, but thankfully there were no crumbs on the coffee table, and the Gran Turismo accessories where neatly returned to their proper place. Smiling she tapped the screen of her phone to send a message to her friend.

_“Hey, thanks for cleaning up after yourself.”_

_“Of course! What kind of slob do you think I am?”_

Korra smirked at Kuvira’s response.

_“Not that I think you’re a slob, it’s just I want to try to keep this place as clean as I can for as long as I can. Who knows when the next rabbit hole will emerge?”_

_“Please don’t revisit that case. It’s closed, and Viper’s drug operation is shutdown, thanks to YOUR outstanding police work. Revel in that and take some much needed time off.”_

Korra bit the inside of her cheek. Deep down she knew Kuvira was right, but something just wasn’t right. The streets were too quiet, and Viper NEVER did anything quietly. Especially when he was hard up for cash. Taking a deep breath Korra responded.

_“Yeah, you’re right. Maybe I’ll use my new found freedom to beat *DAI finally.”_

_“LOL, is that still in your back catalog? I bet you’re still in the Hinterlands huh?”_

Korra chuckled softly.

_“One does not simply LEAVE the Hinterlands.”_

_“LOL Yes, actually one can, but I’ll leave you to your own strategies. Also don’t forget to eat before coming to the gym tonight.”_

The moment Korra saw the words, her stomach let out a loud and long groan. When was the last time she ate? Yesterday evening maybe? She really had to do a better job of taking care of herself.

_“Good call. Guess I should order something.”_

_“No need. I saw the depressing sight of emptiness in your fridge and decided my good deed for the day would be to get you some seaweed noodles.”_

Korra frowned at her phone and walked over into the kitchen to check her fridge. When she opened her fridge, she saw a takeout bag from her favorite restaurant on the top shelf. Korra quirked her mouth upwards in surprise. Kuvira was just full of surprises today. Her partner was more likely to _take_ food from her fridge, than replenish, but to be fair, after cleaning out her fridge earlier that day, there was literally nothing Kuvira could possibly take.

_“Well, I’m pleasantly surprised. Thanks, Vira!”_

_“No problem. I wanted to make sure you had absolutely no excuse for this brutal beatdown you’re about to take.”_

Korra rolled her eyes, as she closed the fridge.

_“Well, whatever the reason it’s greatly appreciated. See ya tonight.”_

_“Later.”_

Placing her phone on the breakfast bar, she reached for her messenger bag and retrieved her laptop. As she sat there waiting for it to boot up, she felt a small pang of guilt, having so easily lied to her partner, but she quickly pushed the feeling aside once her desktop appeared. Once she logged into the VPN, she grabbed her case notes from her messenger bag as well. Now that she’d actually gotten a few decent hours of sleep, she thought it best to start from the beginning just in case her sleep deprived mind missed something.

To call the drug problem in Seattle a crisis would be an understatement. It was more like a pandemic, that originated from West Seattle and had somehow spread to Bellevue. At first it started out with the typical turf skirmishes between the Triple Threats and the Creeping Crystals, but over time, the Triple Threats managed to create a drug empire. In the beginning, nothing was really gained or loss from a turf perspective, as the West and East Precincts worked together, to contain the bloodshed, budget cuts and all.

Korra smiled briefly at the memory. She’d just been promoted to detective, and for whatever reason during that time Lin was consistently placing her in the Industrial District or as it became affectionately known as the New DMZ. She hated working that beat. For the most part there was a lot of watching, waiting, and recording. A small shipment would come in, hours later a crew from the Creeping Crystals would pick it up. A few days later another larger shipment would come in, and a crew from the Triads would pick that up. Lather, rinse, repeat. It was incredibly boring. Years later Korra would find out that it was grunt work, standard issue for all rookie detectives. It wasn’t all bad though, as fate would have it, that’s how she met Mako.

One night, out of sheer boredom, Korra decided to surf one of the other channels on the radio and picked up an exchange between Mako and his superiors. Apparently, the Captain over in the West Precinct had similar hazing rituals for his first-year detectives as well and had placed Mako right under the West Seattle Bridge, just a few miles west of her post. Korra chuckled at the memory. As she recalled, Mako wasn’t thrilled about his post either. She remembered feeling relieved that she wasn’t the only one on that God-awful stakeout and wanted him to feel the same. So, after their uneventful stakeout, Korra radioed him and asked him out for an early breakfast. The rest was history.

She briefly wondered if that’s where she went wrong. Had she simply stayed on the main frequency maybe…

No.

It wouldn’t have made a difference. She probably wouldn’t have felt the emptiness that came after a breakup, but she’d still feel pretty miserable in a lonely kind of way. Korra was instantly depressed by the thought.

Nope.

Not going down that road. Maybe this is why she camped out at the station? Shaking her head, she glanced at the case file again, in an attempt to get her thoughts back on track.

 **Gang** : Triple Threat Triads

**Leader** :

Legal Name: Unknown

Street Alias: Viper

**Lieutenants** :

Legal Name: Unknown

Street Alias: **Tokunga**

Known Territories: Industrial District, Georgetown, North Admiral ( **FCCT** ), West Seattle ( **FCCT** ), Deldridge ( **FCCT** )

Legal Name: Unknown

Street Alias: **Mushi**

Known Territories: Beacon Hill

Legal Name: Unknown

Street Alias: **Shadi Shen**

Known Territories: North Beacon Hill

Legal Name: Unknown

Street Alias: **Zhen**

Known Territories: Columbia City

**FCCT – Formally Creeping Crystal Turf

The Triads and the Creeping Crystals were at a stalemate for a while, and then something shifted. Viper started to gain more territories, including those territories that had been occupied by the Crystals for years. Korra sat back in her chair and regarded the file.

The Creeping Crystals were one of the older gangs in Seattle. There was a time where their name alone would strike fear in cop and civilian alike. As the years went on though they started losing more and more of their turf to these independent nobodies, and of course it was only a matter of time before Viper convinced them to join up with his gang, thereby expanding his empire and his knowledge about the Creeping Crystals.

Korra furrowed her brow, as she turned to the Creeping Crystal case file:

 **Gang** : Creeping Crystals

**Leader** :

Legal Name: **Jargala Omo**

Street Alias: **Jargala**

**Lieutenants** :

Legal Name: Unknown

Street Alias: **Tahno**

Known Territories: Fauntleroy, Foxhill, Deldridge

Jargala, had only just come into power a few years ago, after her father died. Granted she wasn’t as ironclad as her father, but she wasn’t exactly a push over either. Korra was certain that Viper was getting extra resources from somewhere, but she had no idea where. Extra muscle? Guns maybe? Whoever the connect was, they seemed to only work exclusively with Viper, otherwise Jargula would have had a fair shot at keeping her territories.

Korra blinked and glanced at the door in contemplation. Now that she thought about, Jargula didn’t offer much resistance at all when it came to losing her territories, even West Seattle which her father was able to control for ten years. That loss alone should have resulted in an all-out retaliation from the Creeping Crystals. Instead Jargula and her crew haven’t even lifted a finger…why?

Leaning back in her chair she folded her arms.

It’s almost as if she’s out of the drug game completely. The multiple raids on Viper’s territories completely leveled the playing field. His Lieutenants along with 80% of his gang are in Coyote Ridge Corrections. The drug and money stashes are all locked away in the evidence rooms of every precinct in Seattle. Viper doesn’t have a pot to piss in or a window to throw it out of, and at the moment he’s likely trying to lay low until he can come up with his next move. This would be the prime opportunity for Jargula to make a move on her old territories.

“It just doesn’t make any sense”, Korra muttered.

Korra glanced at the time. 7:00. With a sigh she closed her laptop and stuffed her case files back into her messenger bag. She knew she wouldn’t be able to crack the case tonight, but at least she felt better about taking a second glance over everything with a clear head. Granted she still had no idea what Viper is up to, but she now has a different perspective. Jargula has likely been playing in the blind spots of Viper’s investigation and has been using that to her advantage so that she could proceed with her own plans. Whatever those plans are they don’t appear to be drug related.

Getting up she walked over to the fridge to grab her seaweed noodles and placed them in the microwave. Once reheated she quickly scarfed down her meal and went into her bedroom to change and pack everything she would need for the gym. Grabbing her phone from the breakfast bar she checked the time again. 7:30. Traffic wouldn’t be an issue at this time, so she should get to the gym with fifteen mins to spare. Just enough time to get in a quick warm-up.

She didn’t know why, but she was actually… _excited_. The thought of hanging out with Kuvira in a non-work capacity brought a smile to her face. Even though she was annoyed with the idea at first, maybe blowing off some steam in the gym wasn’t the worst idea after everything she’d been through the past couple of weeks. She grabbed her wallet and then her keys, and after one final check around the apartment, she walked out of the door and into the night.

***

“Good. Again!”

Resetting her stance Asami threw another five-punch combo into Bolin’s focus mitts, exhaling sharply with each punch. With each release she felt her anxiety gradually melt away from her body. After the initial call with her new team leads earlier that day, Asami spent the remainder of the day in the garage. Three of the prototypes that she planned to showcase at the Expo were successfully field tested and approved by her internal quality assurance committee. The other two would need to be stripped and rebuilt as somehow her interns managed to order the incorrect parts, and no one seemed to notice the subtle shift in balance until Asami tested them herself. Even though she opted for expedited shipping and called in a few favors with her suppliers, there was no way these prototypes would be approved my Monday. The thought nearly sent Asami over the edge. Instead of taking her frustrations out on the poor interns, she had asked Bolin to arrive to the gym 15 mins earlier than they’d initially planned.

“Good! Let’s add the footwork.”

Asami side stepped Bolin and tucked her body to the right to avoid an incoming hook. She then countered with a jab/hook combo. Stepping forward, she landed a three-punch combo and dodged two incoming hooks from Bolin.

“Nice! Ten seconds left, give me everything you got!”

Asami reset her stance and pummeled into the focus mitts with a flurry of jabs.

“Five, Four, Three, Two, TIME!”

With a final hook Asami, exhaled sharply and walked over to the bench nearby to retrieve her water bottle.

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d swear that you were pretending that I was someone else back there,” Bolin said as he peeled off his focus mitts.

Asami took a long swig of water and wiped her mouth.

“I may or may not have been thinking about a certain intern who might have cost me millions in potential funding.”

Bolin walked over to Asami, handing her a towel.

“Well, I’m very proud of you for not going all crazy Sami on the poor guy. Besides it’s not like you can’t ask for an extension on those submissions.”

Asami grabbed the towel from Bolin and began dabbing her face.

“You’re not wrong, but I don’t want the other competitors to think I’m taking liberties just because I’m hosting. I want everyone to have a fair shot. I don’t know, maybe if we get them field tested in time, I can add them to the winter collection as Special Edition models or something.”

“See! Silver lining! And you just came up with that out of thin air!”

Asami couldn’t help but smirk at her friend. Bolin always had a way of seeing the good in every situation.

“Alright champ I think you’re warmed up enough. Ready to hop in the sparing ring?”

“Sure. Let’s do it.”

Asami bent down to grab her gym bag and draped it across her body. Once Bolin stuffed his focus mitts inside his own gym bag, they both made their way upstairs to the sparring ring. Once they reached the top of the stairs, Bolin stopped dead in his tracks.

“Oh shit…”

Asami frowned at her friend in confusion.

“What? What’s wrong?”

Bolin just stood there completely frozen. Shoulders tense, mouth open, eyes wide and practically fixed on the two women in the sparring ring. Asami furrowed her eyebrows and followed his gaze. The two women were about the same height, with very athletic frames, although one looked slightly more muscular than the other. It was plain to see that they had sparred with one another before as it seemed as though they moved methodically around the ring anticipating the other’s move.

“What? It’s no big deal, we can just ask them how long they’re going to be and come back when they’re done.”

Suddenly freed from his previous trance, Bolin quickly turned to face Asami and vehemently shook his head.

“NO! I mean uh….let’s just go do a few more rounds on the heavy bags and then maybe afterwards, we can go for a run.”

Asami quirked an eyebrow at her friend.

“If I wanted to go for a run and do bag work, I could have done that myself. The only reason I wanted you to come along was so that we could do a few rounds in the ring. Come on let’s just go ask how long they’re going to be and then maybe we can do some work with the speed rope while we wait.”

Bolin directed his gaze to the floor and began to rub the back of his neck. Asami knew him well enough to know that this random display of body language meant that he was nervous about something. She narrowed her eyes at him and glanced back at the fighters in the ring.

What was the big deal? The last time Bolin got this nervous around women was back when he was dating Opal and that was years ago. What is it about these women in particular?

Giving Bolin one final look, she made her way to the sparring ring at the center of the room. Not wanting to abruptly interrupt their workout, she stood next to the right side of the ring watching and waiting until the bell sounded the end of the round. Feeling a firm grip on her elbow, she turned to see her friend with a pleading look in his eyes.

“Asami seriously let’s just go, alright? There’s plenty of other drills we can do, and I promise I really don’t mind.”

Asami rolled her eyes.

“What is your problem? Do you have a crush on them or something? I’m sure Opal doesn’t care that you find other women attractive, especially if they’re as good looking as they are,” she said tilting her head towards the ring.

Bolin rolled his eyes and released a deep sigh.

“No! That’s not it at all alright?”

“Then again, I ask, what is your problem?”

Bolin glanced over at the stairs. For a split second it looked as if he wanted to make a run for it. Releasing another deep breath, he returned his gaze to Asami.

“Do you remember back when you were dating Mako, how you guys would have random fights over the dumbest things? And I told you over and over again that you could do better?”

Asami jerked her head back with a puzzled look on her face.

“What the hell does that have to do with anything?”

_*DING DING*_

Asami heard the bell signaling the end of the round but she didn’t care. She wanted to know what the hell Bolin was getting at with this random line of questioning.

Bolin quickly glanced up at the ring eyes wide with, fear, and what looked like…recognition. Suddenly Asami heard a voice coming from the ring.

“Bolin? Is that you?”

Bolin gave a wry smile and started rubbing the back of his neck.

Asami whipped her head around to get a better look at the woman. She was wearing a blue sports bra with black leggings, and red gloves and headgear. Overall, she had a curvy yet athletic shape with broad shoulders, muscular arms, and rock-hard abs. Even though her headgear obstructed Asami’s view, she could tell that the woman’s sweaty brown hair was pulled back into a low bun. But it was the woman’s ocean blue eyes, that caught Asami’s attention. How was it possible that anyone could have such beautiful blue eyes? She would have gotten lost forever in those eyes, had she not been startled by the sound of Bolin’s voice.

“Hey Korra, it’s been a while. How’ve you been?”

Korra shrugged and motioned to rub the back of her neck before realizing she still had gloves on. Asami briefly wondered if Korra shared the same nervous tick as her friend.

“Not too bad. Been working a lot lately, but I guess you know how the detective thing goes. How about you? Things ok with you and Opal?”

Asami narrowed her eyes. What the hell is going on? Who is this woman and how does she know her two best friends?

“Yeah, everything’s good. I’m good, she’s good, everything is…. Awesome,” Bolin said as he slowly nodded his head.

Korra stared at Bolin for a moment with a bewildered look on her face, before finally acknowledging Asami’s presence. When their eyes locked Asami’s breath hitched under Korra’s intense gaze. It was as though the woman could see past her poised demeanor and right to the core of who she truly was. Asami felt uneasy. She wasn’t used to feeling so…vulnerable, especially in the presence of someone she’s never met.

Korra brought a glove to her mouth and peeled the Velcro off so that she could free her hand. She then gave Asami a crooked smile and extended her hand for Asami to shake.

“It appears our mutual friend has forgotten his manners,” she said with a light chuckle. “I’m Korra.”

Blinking Asami returned Korra’s smile, and accepted her outstretched hand. The moment their hands touched; she suddenly felt a chill run up the length of her arm like a jolt of electricity. Asami briefly wondered if someone had adjusted the A/C.

“I’m Asami, it’s nice to meet you Korra.” Releasing her hand, Asami was suddenly aware of the goosebumps on her arm, and the strange feeling in the pit of her stomach that she couldn’t quite place.

Taking a calming breath, she glanced over at Bolin who was still rubbing the back of his neck and was now sweating buckets. In that moment she wanted to strangle him and again ask what the hell his problem was, but she knew that wouldn’t get her anywhere.

“I don’t think I’ve ever seen Bo this nervous before,” Asami said with a teasing smile. “May I ask how you two know each other? Did you guys have a fling in high school or something?” Asami asked with a light chuckle.

Korra, released a hearty chuckle of her own, “No, not at all. Although I did date his brother for a year before we ended things a few months ago.”

Asami’s eyes widened at Korra’s words and then shot to Bolin who was now looking at the floor in shame. How could Bolin keep something like this from her? They were supposed to be friends! Not only that, but literally, _how_ did he manage to keep this secret? For as long as she’s known Bolin, he has NEVER been able to keep a secret for longer than five minutes. She’d actually be impressed if she didn’t feel so…betrayed.

“Is this why you were acting so weird?”

Bolin slowly raised his eyes to Asami and solemnly nodded his head. Asami sighed, and then chanced another glance at Korra.

Korra harbored a worried expression on her face, as she darted her eyes between the two, and then released a sigh of her own.

“I see,” Korra started. “Looks like we have more in common than we realize Asami. So… how long were you and Mako together?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> *DAI - Dragon Age Inquisition


	6. Chapter 6

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guys! Hopefully i didn't leave you hanging on that cliff for too long! LOL Here's the next chapter! hopefully it pulls you back. :)

“Wait…you ACTUALLY, asked her that?” Kuvira shouted as she stared at Korra incredulously.

“Could you keep your eyes on the road please?!” Korra shouted back as she held on to the handle above the passenger door for dear life.

Prior to their workout, she’d asked Kuvira to give her a ride home afterwards. As she only lived fifteen minutes away from the gym, she figured she could use the run the next morning to get her body out of the apartment and her mind off of the case. Not that she needed a distraction anymore after that weird interaction with Bolin and Asami. 

Korra actually felt relieved that Kuvira had only caught the tail end of the whole ordeal. Had she come over 30 seconds earlier the entire interaction would have ended at lot less amicably than it did. By the time Kuvira had come over to see what was keeping her, Bolin had suddenly found the ability to function like a normal human. 

He’d made up some lame excuse about not needing the sparring ring anymore, told her that it was good seeing her, and quickly ushered Asami back downstairs. Watching them go, Kuvira had asked if everything was alright. Korra had simply shrugged it off and told her she was just catching up with an old friend. 

Once they started the next round however, Kuvira instantly sensed the shift in intensity. She actually had to remind Korra that they were just sparring, and not in a real match. Naturally, when they’d finished sparring, Kuvira demanded to know what had gotten into her all of a sudden. Knowing how much of a hothead her friend was, she promised Kuvira that she’d tell her what was going on once they were out of the gym and in the car. At the time it seemed like a good idea. A safe idea. But now, at this moment, while clinging to the handle above the passenger door, she regretted saying anything at all.

Kuvira fixed her gaze back on the road swerving back into her own lane as she continued, “You actually asked that question out loud? And not in your head?”

Korra rolled her eyes, “Yes. I actually asked her out loud and to her face.”

“And what did she say?”

Korra sighed, “nine months.”

“Holy shit! That’s almost as long as he was with you! That’s long enough to have a baby! Oh shit is she pregnant? Did that bastard get her pregnant while he was still dating you?!”

Korra looked at the ceiling and released another sigh.

“No Vira, she’s not pregnant. At least I don’t think so.”

“But you don’t know for sure.” Kuvira shook her head as she gripped the steering wheel. “That bastard…I knew I never liked him. Smiling in everyone’s face like he’s Perfect fucking Patrick and he’s off having secret families with America’s Next Top Model!”

“Who the hell is Perfect Patrick?”

“The male version of Perfect Patty… come on Korra keep up with me here!”

“Well, I was right there with you until you started talking about Patty and Patrick! And who’s to say that Patty isn’t Patrick? Patty could totally be a unisex nickname, but society has conditioned us to think that Patty can only be synonymous with Patricia.” 

Korra’s eyes widened as a lightbulb went off in her head.

“Holy shit! Do you think that’s what inspired Charles M. Schulz to create Peppermint Patty? She was such a loveable character that really pushed the envelope of the so-called gender norms back in the fifties. I can totally see it. Ugh, Schulz was brilliant. Fucking brilliant. And I bet -” 

“Korra are you fucking kidding me? Why aren’t you more upset about this?”

Korra closed her eyes and shook her head. So much for trying to avert the conversation away from Mako. She knew Kurvira would react this way. Her friend was incredibly overprotective of her, even more so than Naga. Now that she thought about it, Naga never did let Mako pet her, and she’s the most loveable dog on the planet. Had she really been that oblivious to all of the red flags? Releasing another sigh, she opened her eyes and shrugged.

“Honestly, I’m not that shocked. Mako was always going on and on about how intense, and emotional I was. Maybe he saw something in her he wished he saw in me.”

Kuvira shot Korra an impassive look.

“Don’t start with that self-deprecating shit. Just because Mako couldn’t handle being with someone like you doesn’t mean that there’s something wrong with you.”

Korra shrugged.

“Not saying there is. All I’m saying is, Mako and I were both unhappy in our relationship. He couldn’t handle my intensity, and I couldn’t handle not being understood. Outside of the job, we just never clicked.”

“So that gives him a free pass to cheat on you?”

“Of course not! I’m not excusing what he did. If anything, it just makes me understand him a little bit more.”

Kuvira frowned while managing to keep her eyes on the road.

“It took him cheating on you to understand that he was an asshole?”

Korra snorted.

“No. I knew he was an asshole pretty early in our relationship. But what I’m beginning to understand is that maybe he was trying to learn about himself. Maybe he thought dating the both of us would help him figure out what he wanted.”

The car went silent for a moment as Kuvira considered this. 

“…That is such bullshit! I think you’re giving this asshole way too much credit. He wasn’t on some great journey of self discovery! He just wanted to get laid! There’s no way you’re cool with all of this.”

“I’m not. I’m simply giving the situation all of the thought and energy required, which isn’t much.” 

“But –”

“I know, he’s an asshole. And probably shouldn’t be able to get away with this. But at the end of the day, it’s over between us and has been for a while. If I were to go to West Seattle right now and slash his tires, and key his car, it wouldn’t change anything. It would only give him the satisfaction of knowing that I still have feelings for him. Which I don’t.”

Kuvira shook her head as she pulled into a parking space outside of Korra’s apartment. The travel time was a lot shorter than Korra expected. Maybe Kuvira really was pissed off.

As she put the car in Park, she shook her head.

“You’re a better woman than I am. If I wasn’t an officer of the law, a few slashed tires and a keyed car would be the least of his worries…”

Korra laughed as she gathered her things.

“Well, it’s a good thing you are an officer of the law with a promising career ahead of you, that’s hardly worth jeopardizing over an asshole like Mako.”

Kuvira smirked.

“Well, you got me there...”

Turning to face Korra she regarded her with a serious expression. “Are you sure you’re alright? I can stay the night. We can hang out, watch movies, you can tell me more about your Peppermint Patty theories, it’ll be just like old times.”

Korra laughed in response.

“I’m fine Vira. I’m just going to grab a shower and crash. Besides, as you saw earlier today, I don’t have any food. My mom would kill me if she knew I was having people over without the proper accommodations.”

“We can order a pizza.”

“And ruin that intense workout we just had? Not to mention your match this Friday…”

Kuvira sighed.

“Fine. But if you change your mind about getting revenge on that douchebag you call me immediately. I know a guy that has a very particular set of skills, an-”

“Vira…”

“Hey, I’m just laying all options on the table. I’ve been very tolerant of this bastard for a very long time, and after this little revelation, the gloves are off in my book.”

Smiling, Korra shook her head as she opened the door.

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

“That’s all I’m asking.”

“Shoot me a text when you get home?”

“Will do.”

She got out of the car and watched as Kuvira turned out of the parking lot and into the night. With her friend out of sight, she began to feel the familiar pang of loneliness, and suddenly wished that she hadn’t turned down her friends offer to stay the night. A night in with her friend would have been the perfect distraction to get her mind off of this clusterfuck of a day. She never thought in a million years that her life would take such a dramatic turn. Yet here she was, alone and on unpaid leave. There really couldn’t be anything more pathetic. Taking a deep breath, she turned on her heel and headed up the stairs to her apartment.

When she walked through the door, she placed her gym bag on the floor, and made her way to her bedroom to peel out of her gym clothes. Throwing her dirty clothes in the hamper, she grabbed her towel and placed it around her body as she crossed the hall to the bathroom. She freed her hair from her sweaty bun and stepped into the tub while turning the water on.

The water came out ice cold at first, but Korra didn’t mind as she was too enraptured in her own thoughts to notice. This had been a long fucking day. Just when she started to come to terms with being on leave, the universe decided to throw something else her way. Mako had been dating another woman. Not just any woman, possibly the most beautiful woman Korra had ever laid her eyes on. Even though the woman was visibly upset, it was still hard to miss her stunning features. Her lean yet athletic figure, long black hair, full lips, and those stunning green eyes. Korra wondered how dumb Mako had to be to ever let a woman like that slip through his fingers. Actually, she wondered what a woman like that saw in Mako in the first place. Surely with her looks, she could’ve had anyone she wanted. Korra leaned her arm against the shower wall and glanced down. What would it take to make a woman like that happy anyways? What lengths did Mako have to go through to get her attention? Feeling the water get warmer she ceased her train of thought and proceeded to wash herself.

Once she was all dried off and moisturized, she put on her pajamas from earlier and climbed in the bed lying on her back, one hand behind her head, the other on her stomach. Gazing up at the ceiling she briefly considered her earlier train of thought. She had just found out that her ex-boyfriend was cheating on her with a beautiful woman, and instead of wondering if this woman made him happy, she was wondering if Mako was good enough for her. Shaking her head at the absurdity of it all she turned on her side and closed her eyes. As she drifted to sleep, images of Asami danced across her mind.

***

Asami took another sip of wine as she stared out of her window and into the night. After Bolin had rushed her out of the sparring area, she ripped herself out of his hold and immediately called an Uber to take her home. She thought the ride home would give her time to think about everything that had happened, but her thoughts were continuously interrupted by multiple calls and texts from Bolin. She was certain that her friend wanted to apologize and explain his actions, but Asami wasn’t in the mood. She needed time. Time to process. Time to think. 

Mako had been cheating on her for months, and Bolin had been covering for him. She felt like such a fool. How had she not seen this before? Asami began to go over every moment of their relationship looking for some sort of clue to Mako’s infidelity. All of the late nights at work, and the hurried conversations over the phone, at the time she just wrote it all off as conflicting work schedules. Looking back on it now, maybe it was more than that. 

She shook her head as she brought the wine glass to her lips once more. As the cool liquid touched her lips, she briefly wondered if Korra made him feel needed. Yet based on their single interaction, Korra seemed like the type of woman who wouldn’t need anyone, not the way Mako wanted to be needed. She seemed so confident and sure of herself. Not quite arrogant, but then again not exactly modest either. Didn’t Korra say she was a detective? Maybe it’s a trait that came with the job? 

Asami snorted at her own thought. If that was the case, then what the hell was Mako’s excuse? Had he been sure of ANYTHING maybe she wouldn’t be caught in this stupid love triangle, and maybe Bolin wouldn’t have been caught in the middle of it. Asami sighed.

Poor Bolin. Mako really put him in a shitty situation. It must have been difficult having to choose between his brother and his best friend. As she replayed her time with Mako in her head, she did recall random moments when Bolin would tell Asami, that she could do better. At the time Asami always brushed his comments off, thinking Bolin was speaking in terms of their obvious gap in social status. She kicked herself for not giving Bolin more credit. He knew that she didn’t care about titles or money when it came to dating. As long as the person had a good heart and a good head on their shoulders that’s all that mattered. Well, the joke was on her. Turns out Mako was lacking one or both of those qualities. 

Finishing her glass of wine, Asami crossed the room into the kitchen to pour another glass. As she poured her mind went back to her conversation with Korra. Korra seemed so…unbothered by this new revelation. Asami half expected Korra to jump over the ropes and come straight for her. Instead, she was surprisingly calm and levelheaded. Did she simply not care? Asami had to admit that Korra’s reaction was not at all what she was expecting from a woman who just found out that her ex-boyfriend had been cheating on her. 

Placing the bottle down on the counter, Asami looked upward in contemplation. How does she feel about all of this? Sure, there were initial feelings of betrayal and embarrassment but, does she really care that Mako was cheating? She certainly holds no ill-will towards Korra, as she seemed to be learning about all of this for the first time as well. Asami sighed as she made her way back to her window.

She was about to contemplate her internal question further when she was startled by the sound of her phone vibrating on the kitchen counter. Rolling her eyes, she went back into the kitchen to answer her phone.

“What do you want Bolin?”

“Asami I am SO sorry that you had to find out like this, if you could just give me a chance to explain...”

Asami sighed.

“Bo…I understand. He’s your brother, and he put you in a pretty awful situation. I can only imagine what that was like for you to bare a burden that wasn’t yours to bare.”

“It was awful…I hated the idea of lying to you, and I hated Mako even more for doing what he did. But still, I really hate that you had to find out this way ‘Sami please believe that.”

“So, what was the plan exactly? Were you guys expecting to leave me in the dark forever? I mean seriously what if we’d never run into Korra tonight?”

Asami heard Bolin sigh.

“Asami you have no idea how many times I wanted to tell you. Even after you guys had ended things. But…it wasn’t my secret to tell…”

Asami returned Bolin’s sigh and nodded her head.

“You’re right. And it’s not fair for you to be getting all of the blow back from a situation that Mako created. I’m sorry Bo.”

“No, I’m the one that’s sorry Sami. I know this puts a strain on our friendship, and I’d do anything to make that right.”

Asami couldn’t help but smile through the phone. For whatever reason she imagined Bolin staring up at her with those huge green eyes of his in a way that melted her heart. She couldn’t stay mad at Bolin even if she wanted to. Especially when his brother was the one that deserved her wrath. Even so, she was still feeling pretty raw about being lied to for so long.

“I appreciate that Bo. I just…I’m gonna need some time.”

“I get that, and I respect it. Just let me know if there’s anything that I can do in the meantime.”

“Well, if you’re really sorry, you’d let me drown my sorrows in an entire carton of ice-cream tonight.”

Bolin snorted.

“Please. My asshole of a brother is not a good enough reason for you to throw away all of the hard work we’ve done this week. You’ll have to try again.”

Asami chuckled.

“Yeah, you’re definitely right about that.”

“So…I know I probably have no right to ask you this but…will you be ok?”

“Of course, I will. Your brother and I have been over for six months. Even while we were dating, I knew that he had no idea what he wanted, and finding all of this out today, just proves my point. If anything, my decision to end things with him is solidified.”

“I see…are you trying to convince yourself of something or is this how you really feel.”

“This is how I really feel. I refuse to let Mako take up anymore real estate in my mind. I have far more important things to worry about.”

“If you say so. I guess I’ll leave you to it then. See you later?”

“Sure. Later Bo.”

Hanging up the phone, Asami downed the last of her wine, and put the glass in the sink. As she made her way to the bedroom, Asami thought of her internal question from earlier. Did she care that Mako cheated on her? 

Was it shocking when she first heard the news? Absolutely. Was she embarrassed that the entire world seemed to know about Mako’s infidelity, and she didn’t? Of course. But in the grand scheme of things, it didn’t matter. They were over, and the only thing left to do was move on. Nevertheless, it still hurt to know that she was left in the dark for so long.

As Asami climbed in bed, she briefly began to think about Korra. She envied her ability to let this entire situation roll off of her shoulders. Maybe one day she’d work up the courage to ask how she does it. Shaking her head, she turned off the light on her nightstand and drifted off to sleep. Dreaming of blue eyes and a crooked smile.


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guys! Apologies for the delayed post, my life has been insane lately! To make up for it, I've made this chapter a little longer than usual. As always feedback is welcomed and appreciated!

Asami stepped into the elevator and put in the code for the top floor of the Future Industries building. As the doors closed, she closed her eyes and took a deep calming breath. Today was a new day. Everything that happened last night, or even last year did not matter. She had a company to run, and an Expo to prepare for, there was no time to dwell on the past. She would just go straight to her office and bury herself in work. With any luck she’d work straight through to Friday and she’d finally compete in the race that she so desperately needed.

When the doors to the elevator opened, she spotted Opal hunched over her desk, with one hand on her head, and the other holding her cellphone to her ear. Asami briefly wondered if she was talking to Bolin, and then she heard Opal release an exasperated sigh.

“Well maybe you should have thought about that before lying to your best friend and your wife!”

Asami smirked at her friend’s words, as she slowly approached the receptionist desk. It gave her a small sense of satisfaction to know that she wasn’t the only one upset at Bolin.

“Well, that’s just too bad Bolin! Why don’t you call your brother, I’m sure he’ll have better accommodations for you at his apartment, what with you guys being so close and all.”

Asami put a hand over her mouth and snickered. Hearing this, Opal darted her eyes in Asami’s direction with a startled look on her face.

“Asami’s here Bolin I have to go. No! Tell her yourself! I gotta go.”

Hanging up the phone, Opal stood up from her chair and took a step towards Asami.

“Hey... How are you feeling?”

Asami smiled at her friend for a lingering moment. Suddenly she felt lighter. As if a giant weight she had no idea she was carrying had been lifted. Naturally she’d assumed that Bolin had told Opal from the very beginning about what Mako had done. In fact, it was part of the reason why she wanted to seclude herself in her office today. A part of her expected there to be an awkward exchange with Opal highlighted with regret, pain, and the inevitable feeling of loneliness. It had never even occurred to her that Bolin would be keeping secrets from his wife as well.

“Had you asked me that five minutes ago I probably would have put on a brave face and lied through my teeth.”

Opal raised an eyebrow.

“And now?”

“Now…I can tell you that I’m feeling relieved.”

Opal jerked her head back with a puzzled expression on her face.

“Why do you feel relieved?”

“Because I thought I was the only one who didn’t know about Mako cheating on me. I thought that…”

“You thought that you’d have to repair two friendships instead of one?”

Asami offered a sad smile and nodded her head.

Opal sighed.

“Well, I can assure you that I was just as clueless as you were. Imagine my surprise when Bolin came home last night rambling about how much you hate him, and how you’ll never forgive him.”

Asami shook her head.

“I could never hate Bo. Hell, I can even understand his side of things. It’ll just take a while for me to be able to trust him again.”

Opal snorted.

“Tell me about it. And that’s exactly why he’s been exiled to the couch until the end of time! I can’t even look at him anymore without feeling so disgusted.”

Opal paused briefly and looked towards the ceiling.

“Well, now that you mention it, I guess I can see why he didn’t tell me either.”

Asami quirked an eyebrow at her friend.

“Really? Why is that?”

“Because I would have _killed_ Mako! Nobody cheats on my best friend and gets away with it!”

Asami couldn’t help but laugh at her friend as she made her way into her office. Opal followed her inside and shut the door behind her.

“So?”

Asami glanced up at Opal as she shrugged out of her coat.

“So…what?”

“So, what was she like?”

“Who?”

“The other woman! What was her name?”

“Korra.”

“Yeah, that’s right, Korra. Well?”

Asami took a seat in her chair and powered up her iMac. It was a simple question. One Asami should have been able to answer. Yet for whatever reason, recalling her interaction with Korra, made her feel flustered…and hot. Almost as if she was right back in that gym being scorched by those burning blue eyes. The thought made her bite her lip. What the hell was wrong with her? Remembering Opal’s question, she licked her lips and cleared her throat.

“She was…intense.”

“Intense? What the hell does that mean?”

“I don’t know I can’t describe it, just… something about her aura…”

“I see…did you get the impression that she wanted to fight you or something?”

Asami snorted.

“No, it was quite the opposite actually. She seemed really nonchalant about the whole thing.”

“Interesting. Do you think she knew about you all along?”

Asami shook her head.

“I don’t think so, judging from her initial reaction she seemed just as shocked as I was.”

“Hmm…well was she at least cute?”

“She was gorgeous.”

Asami flinched at her own audacity. Did she really just say that out loud? Was it normal to describe the woman your ex cheated on you with as gorgeous?

Opal quirked an eyebrow at her friend.

“What?”

Opal shrugged.

“Not sure yet, although you’re obviously intrigued with her.”

Asami curled her lips into a small smirk. Korra _was_ intriguing. The news of Mako’s infidelity probably would have flustered any other woman. Korra on the other hand, was so calm, poised even. She never once raised her voice, nor disrespected Asami. She simply just stood there and listened intently. Nodding every now again, but never breaking eye contact. _God_ those eyes. So mysterious yet so intense. Remembering herself, Asami straightened in her chair and cleared her throat.

“I suppose I am.”

Opal shot Asami a knowing glance and bit her lip to refrain from smiling.

“If you say so. So, I take it we’re not taking a trip to West Seattle to break Mako’s nose?”

Asami chuckled.

“No, I’m afraid not. Don’t get me wrong I’m incredibly upset with him, and if he were to walk through that door right now, he’d definitely hear a few choice words from me. At the same time, I’m also not going to go out of my way to make his life miserable, I have better things to do with my time.”

Opal smirked and then nodded her head.

“Fair enough. So, what’s on the agenda today boss?”

Grateful for the subject change, Asami straightened up in her chair.

“Well, I’ll need you to hold all of my calls this morning. I’m making some changes to the new Winter Collection and I don’t want to be disturbed.”

“Can do. Do you want me to go ahead and schedule a call for tomorrow morning with the department heads so that everyone is on the same page with the new changes?”

“Yes please. Also, would you please put a status call on the books with the team leads down in the garage? I want to make sure everyone is brought up to speed on the new plan of action this week.”

“Not a problem. And uh…what about your standing appointment with Bo at twelve?”

Asami sighed while smiling at her friend.

“Keep it on the books but tell him I can only do thirty minutes today.”

Opal returned a smile of her own.

“Will do. Anything else I can do for you boss?”

Asami shook her head.

“Nope I think that covers it.”

“Great. I’ll leave you to it.”

Opal started for the door, and hesitated as she put her hand on the door handle.

“Are you sure you’re alright? If you like we can go out for drinks later tonight once you’ve finished up in the garage.”

Asami looked up at her friend and smiled.

“I’m fine Opal really. If that changes believe me, you’ll be the first to know.”

Opal gave Asami a nod and headed back to her desk, closing the door behind her. Finally, alone in her office, Asami leaned back in her chair and gazed at the Seattle skyline. Maybe things aren’t as bad as she originally thought. She would get through this day, just like any other day, and thirty-six hours from now, she would have her release, and all will be right with the world.

*** 

Korra stepped up on to the porch and knocked on the door. As she waited, she exhaled and took a brief look around her old neighborhood. It was amazing how much had changed, and incredible still how much had stayed the same. Memories of her childhood flashed across her mind’s eye as she directed her gaze down the street. Images of ten-year-old Korra scoring the winning goal in street hockey, sounds of the ice cream truck approaching her street, on a hot summer’s day, it all filled Korra with an overwhelming sense of nostalgia. Moments later she heard the sound of movement on the other side of the door, followed by the barking of an overexcited Labrador. Smiling, Korra bent down on one knee with outstretched arms. When her mother opened the door, Naga darted out of the house and ran into Korra’s arms at top speed. Korra giggled uncontrollably as her dog licked her face and neck.

“I’m glad to see you too girl. I missed you.”

Rising to her feet, she turned her attention to her mother, who was leaning against the doorframe smiling at the pair. Her mother was dressed in blue scrubs and tennis shoes, with her brown and grey hair pulled back into a bun.

“Well, it’s nice to see that you still remember the way home,” Senna said with a smile, as she walked over to Korra with open arms.

Stepping into her mother’s embrace, Korra released a chuckle.

“It’s good to see you mom. How’ve you been? Are you still working crazy hours at the hospital?”

Releasing one of her arms, Senna turned them so that they could head into the house.

“Oh well it hasn’t been too bad lately. Today was actually my last day for the week. After this I have four glorious off days that I’m really looking forward to.”

Closing the door behind them, Korra took a moment to look around. Not much had changed since the last time she dropped in on her parents for a visit. In the family room there was a large tan sofa with a matching recliner to the right of it. On the left side of the sofa was a tan love seat that had a tribal blanket draped over the back of it. In the middle of the room was a large round coffee table that sat on top of a handmade tufted wool emerald green rug. Mounted on the wall facing the sofa was a 50” TV.

As Korra and her mother crossed the family room to get to the kitchen, she was struck with a sudden flash of nostalgia as the kitchen table came into view. The round wooden table sat to the far right of the kitchen next to the bay windows that overlooked the street and were accompanied by four wooden chairs with blue cushions in each.

Korra couldn’t help but smile as she pulled up a chair. God the conversations that were had at this very table. From the heart to hearts with her mother, to the epic debates that she had with Kuvira, if there was ever a conversation worth having in her parents’ household, it happened at this table. As she sat down, her mother retrieved a Tupperware dish full of chili from the freezer and placed it on the table in front of her.

“As promised. Just be sure to keep this to yourself. You know how Vira is.”

Laughing Korra reached out for the dish and slid it closer to her chest.

“Don’t worry, this exchange never happened.”

Senna released a chuckle of her own and pointed her thumb towards the stove.

“I was just about to make some tea, would you like a cup.”

“Yeah sure, that’d be great.”

At that moment Naga approached her owner and laid her head on Korra’s knee. Korra gently scratched her behind the ears and glanced up at her mother.

“I hope she wasn’t too much trouble.”

“Oh no not at all! It was nice having someone to come home to.”

Korra nodded and offered her mother a sad smile. For as long as she could remember her parents had always had conflicting work schedules. Her father was a Captain in the Navy and the commanding officer of the Seattle MEPS (Military Entrance Processing Station). Other than the rare occasions he had to work later than usual; he generally was able to get home at a respectable time in the evenings. Her mother on the other hand, who worked as an ER Physician at Virginia Mason Hospital, had a very unpredictable work schedule. Sometimes she would work the morning shift and be able to greet her father when he got home in the evenings. Other times, she would have to work the night shift or get called in on the weekends, in which case she would be walking out of the door when her father would walk in.

Once she placed the teapot on the stove, Senna pulled up a chair at the table and sat across from Korra. When she sat down, Naga retreated under the table and laid down in between the feet of Korra and her mother.

“It’s really good to see you sweetie,” Senna said with a smile.

Korra returned her mother’s smile.

“You too mom.”

“So, Kuvira tells me that you somehow earned an extended vacation. That must be nice.”

Korra snorted.

“That’s one way of looking at it.”

Senna shot her a quizzical look.

“Are you that much of a workaholic that you don’t know what to do with yourself when you finally get some time off?”

Korra shrugged.

“I guess so. If it wasn’t for Vira needing a sparring partner this week I’d probably go stir crazy in the apartment.”

“Oh sweetie, you’re far too young to spend all of your days cooped up in that apartment. You need to get out, try some new things, maybe meet some new people…”

Korra sighed as she glanced up at her mother.

“I don’t think I’m ready for another relationship right now mom. Especially after the last one.”

Tapping the tip of her index finger on the table, Korra sighed and glanced at the floor. She suddenly felt exhausted. As if all of the angst and misery from her relationship with Mako had come back tenfold. The last thing she needed was to end up in another relationship with someone that didn’t understand her, or worse, someone who made her feel as though she had to make herself smaller so that they could feel comfortable being around her.

No.

She wasn’t going to put herself through that again. Sure, she was lonely, but if being lonely meant that she could proudly be herself; and feel comfortable in her own skin, then that’s what she was going to do.

Senna furrowed her brow, having witnessed the internal turmoil that Korra was going through.

“I wasn’t necessarily saying that you should jump headfirst into another relationship, I just think that it’d be good for you to switch up the routine.”

Korra slowly nodded her head, contemplating her mother’s words. Maybe it _would_ be good to switch things up. It’d definitely get her mind off of the case and save her the embarrassment of being a complete and total loser.

“Yeah. Maybe you’re right.”

Senna opened her mouth as if she was about to say something when the tea kettle began to whistle. Closing her mouth, she got up from the table to take the kettle off the stove and fetch two teacups. She filled both cups with tea and returned the kettle to the stove. Grabbing both cups, she returned to the table placing a cup in front of Korra, and a cup in front of her empty chair.

“Would you care for any milk or honey?”

“Yeah honey would be good.”

Nodding her head, Senna walked over to the pantry to retrieve the honey. When she came out, she grabbed two teaspoons from the drawer next to the stove. Walking back over to the table, she placed the honey in the middle of the table and gave Korra one of the teaspoons before taking her seat.

“Is there something wrong sweetie? It seems like there’s something troubling you.”

Korra reached over to grab the honey and proceeded to squeeze a generous amount into her teaspoon.

“It’s just been a long week. Nothing to concern yourself with mom.”

“I’m your mother. Everything you do concerns me, especially when you’re sitting at my kitchen table clearly distraught about something.”

After stirring in her honey, Korra took a sip of her tea and slowly placed the cup back down on the table with her hands still gripping the cup. Senna slowly reached across the table and grabbed Korra’s hand. When Korra met her gaze, Senna offered an encouraging smile.

“Come on, tell me all about it.”

Korra smirked as she glanced down at their hands. Her mother always had an uncanny way of getting her to open up. Even as a kid, Korra had a hard time articulating the whirlwind of emotions she felt, and because of this, she found it easier to just keep them bottled up. With Senna however, expressing her feelings was as easy as breathing. Her calm and patient demeanor made it easier for Korra to open up without feeling timid or apprehensive. Senna always had a way of making Korra feel as though her feelings were real and valid. While at the same time, offering a different perspective on things without belittling Korra’s. In those rare moments when Korra didn’t understand her feelings at all, her mother often helped her identify what she was feeling and would explain it in a way that Korra could understand.

Squeezing her mother’s hand Korra released a deep sigh. Taking this as a cue that Korra was ready to talk, Senna released her hand, and brought her teacup to her lips.

“I ran into Bolin at the gym yesterday.”

Her mother blinked in surprise.

“Oh? How’s he?” she asked before taking a sip of the warm liquid.

“He’s fine. He says that Opal’s fine too.”

Senna placed the teacup down on the table before responding.

“Well, that’s good to hear…”

Korra grazed her fingertips across the warm teacup she was holding. As easy as it was to talk to her mother, she felt shy all of a sudden and couldn’t quite place why. Sitting up straight in her chair she dug deep within herself for the will to push through.

“Yeah, he was there with a friend. A friend that apparently was seeing Mako, at the same time I was.”

Senna’s eyebrows shot up in surprise.

“Wow…Um…how did that go?”

Korra shrugged.

“I guess it went as well as something like that could go. I didn’t fight the woman if that’s what you’re wondering.”

Senna shook her head.

“No. That’s not what I was wondering at all. Your father and I raised you better than that. However, I am wondering how you’re feeling about all of this.”

Taking her teacup in her hands, Korra raised it to her lips and took a welcome sip, allowing the warmth to flood her body and melt away her inhibitions. When she put the teacup down, she glanced up at her mother and shrugged.

“I guess I’m feeling indifferent. Mako and I are done, and it sounds like Asami is done with him as well. I just don’t see the use in crying over a relationship that’s beyond over.”

Senna nodded her head slowly as she contemplated her daughter’s words.

“Asami…is that her name?”

Korra nodded her head, “yeah.”

“Well, that is certainly a very mature and rational way to approach the situation. But you know, no one would blame you if you _did_ feel something other than indifference. You and Mako were together for a year, you can’t tell me in all of that time together you didn’t grow to love him.”

“Of course, I did. In the beginning things were great. But once we got out of the honeymoon stage, that’s when I started to feel the shift. All of a sudden, I was too impassioned and too intense for him. He made me feel like I was too much for him to handle. So, _because_ I loved him, and because I wanted him to feel comfortable around me, I stopped sharing things with him. The heartfelt “I love yous” turned into endearing looks, which then turned into subtle nods. The impassioned discussions that we used to have about the job turned into generic small talk. Our day to day just got so mundane so quickly because I felt as though if I showed even a fraction of emotion, he would either shut down or blow up on me.”

Senna tilted her head with a perplexed look on her face.

“So, you guys kept _everything_ from each other? Even those exciting or frustrating moments that might have happened at work?”

Korra gave a slight shrug.

“Anything that excited, or frustrated me, I would either tell you or Vira. After a while we just started growing further and further apart, and it got to the point where we were asking ourselves, ‘why are we even together?’”

“Hmm…well, in the few interactions that I’ve had with Mako, he didn’t strike me as the type to just open up and share his feelings. As a matter of fact, I’m not even sure he knew how. I would think you’d know a thing or two about that.”

“Yeah, but that was back when I was a kid mom. I’d like to think that as adults we know how to work out our feelings and express them in a healthy way.”

Senna shrugged.

“You’d be surprised. I’ve been married to your father for 25 years and there are still moments where I have to help him understand what he’s feeling.”

Korra sighed.

“So, are you saying that I created the rift between Mako and I?”

“Not at all. I’ve never known you to hold your tongue about anything, so the fact that you felt you had to do that around Mako just proves to me that he might have been a little intimidated by you.”

“But why? We were friends before we became lovers. I thought we understood each other.”

“Well, being in a friendship versus being romantically involved with someone are two completely different dynamics, especially for men. As a friend you don’t feel that pressure of commitment weighing down on you. For the most part you’re free to share as much as you like with the other. In a relationship, the stakes are much higher. You’re essentially rehearsing for a possible marriage. So those things that you glossed over as a friend, may become incredibly obvious in a relationship, because you’re looking at it from a perspective of “can I spend the rest of my life with this?”

Korra jerked her head back. She’d never thought about it that way before. Maybe Mako just couldn’t see himself with someone like her in a long-term relationship. The thought was depressing. Yet on the other hand, she could definitely relate. Who wants to consistently walk on eggshells with your spouse for the rest of their lives?

“Hmm. I guess you’re right mom, I never thought about it that way before.”

Korra solemnly directed her gaze to the floor, as she tapped her fingers on her teacup. Senna again reached across the table and grabbed her hand.

“I didn’t say that to imply that you’re not the marrying type. I said it because I think Mako was so intimidated by your drive, and your passion, that he didn’t know how he could measure up to you. Let alone be the one to support you when needed. I think being with you gave Mako a snapshot of a future that he never dreamed for himself, and for the first time, perhaps in his adult life, he had to ask himself the same question we all ask ourselves when we come into adulthood. ‘What type of person do I want to be?’ AND if you find yourself in a committed relationship, the follow-up question to that is ‘Will I compliment the person I’m with, and will they do the same for me?’”

Korra nodded her head as she listened to her mother’s words.

“Again, based on the few interactions I’ve had with Mako, I don’t think he ever got around to answering the first question, let alone the second.”

Korra couldn’t help but chuckle. How is it that her mom was so perceptive? She’d only brought Mako to dinner a couple of times, and he didn’t really contribute to their conversations that much unless the topic of work came up. Putting a hand under her chin, she smiled endearingly at her mother.

“If you’re saying all of this to give me a confidence boost, mission accomplished.”

Senna smirked

“No not really, but it’s nice when things work out.”

Korra exploded with laughter, and seconds later Senna joined her.

“Well then what was the point oh wise mother of mine?”

Senna smiled as she gazed into her daughter’s ocean blue eyes.

“The point, my dear Korra, was to give you some perspective. The only thing worse than being distraught is being distraught over the wrong thing. There’s _nothing_ wrong with you sweetie. You just haven’t found your complimenting mate yet.”

Smiling, Korra got up from her chair and tenderly embraced her mother.

“Thank you for being so awesome mom.”

Senna squeezed her tighter and sighed.

“I love you sweetie.”

Korra’s eyes watered at the overwhelming emotion that she felt in that moment in her mother’s arms. It was like she was a kid again, and her mother was shielding her from all of the hurt and pain in the world. Even though she was old enough to take care of herself, and was very capable of protecting herself, Korra had never felt as safe as she did in that moment standing in her mother’s kitchen. Just as they were about to pull away from each other, the front door opened, followed by the familiar plodding steps of her father.

“Korra?”

Pulling away Korra quickly dabbed at her eyes.

“Hi Dad.”

Without missing a beat, Tonraq, dropped his briefcase on the floor and ran up to Korra to pull her in giant bear hug.

“Sweetheart it’s so good to see you!”

Gasping for air, Korra pat her father on the back.

“It’s good to see you to Dad.”

Pulling away, Tonraq cupped the side of Korra’s cheek and kissed her forehead.

“How are you sweetheart? Kuvira said that your bust went well a few weeks ago and you earned yourself a vacation?”

Korra was about to roll her eyes, before remembering herself. She remembered all to well how much her father hated when she rolled her eyes.

“Yeah something like that.”

“Any casualties on your side?”

“No sir, everyone made it home safe and sound.”

“That’s my girl. You keep it up and you’ll be promoted to Sgt. In no time.”

Korra rubbed the back of her neck.

“We’ll see dad.”

Turning his gaze towards his wife, he pulled her into his arms, and gave her butterfly kisses all over her face. Senna’s laughter filled the entire house, and Korra couldn’t help but smile at the pair. After 25 years of marriage, her parents were still going strong. In spite of all of the spats they had in the past, and their conflicting work schedules, their love and devotion for one another never wavered. Every day they both made the choice to love each other. If she could find even a fraction of what her parents had she would consider herself a lucky woman.

Korra was brought back to the present by the sounds of moaning and lips smacking. When she gazed back at her parents, they were up against the fridge making out like a pair of horny teenagers.

“WELL OKAY!” she yelled, “I’m just gonna take Naga and go!”

Her parents pulled away from each other in surprise, embarrassed that they were caught in such an act by their daughter.

“Oh, we’re sorry sweetie,” Senna said as she wiped her mouth. “With our crazy schedules we’ve uh…learned not to waste any time.”

Senna flashed a knowing smile at Tonraq, while Tonraq bit his lip and grabbed Senna’s butt.

Korra stood there with her nose scrunched up in disgust as she darted her eyes between her parents.

“Yeeeeeeah, I’m gonna go. Thanks again for taking care of Naga.”

Grabbing Naga’s leash and her chili from the table, she whistled and patted her leg to get Naga’s attention. Naga ran up to her and got up on her hind legs so that Korra could put on her leash.

“You sure you don’t want to stay for dinner kiddo?” Tonraq asked.

Korra shot him a puzzled look.

“Yeah, no, after what I just saw, I’ve _completely_ lost my appetite.”

“Oh, don’t be so immature Korra, how do you think you were brought into this world?” her mother asked quirking an eyebrow at her.

“A stork. A tall long-legged stork.”

Her parents erupted with laughter. After a while, Tonraq had finally sobered up and walked over to his daughter placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Well sorry to disappoint you kiddo, but the only long-legged animal around here is-“

“OKAY! I’M LEAVING! GOODNIGHT!”

Walking out of the kitchen and across the family room, Korra could hear the sounds of her parents’ laughter reverberating through the house. As she opened the door, she heard her mother call out.

“Drive safely sweetie!”

Without looking Korra gave her a thumbs up and shut the door behind her.

***

Two hours later, she’d walked and fed Naga; scarfed down the chili her mother had given her; and was out of the door and headed to the gym to meet Kuvira for a light workout. They’d already done 5 mins of speed rope work and spent 10 mins on the speed bag. They agreed to end the workout with 5 mins of focus mitt training before calling it a night.

“No way! Tonraq and Senna still have sex?”

Korra rolled her eyes as she reset her stance and held up the focus mitts.

“It would appear so. Give me eight sets of 1, 4, 5.”

Kuvira reset her stance and unloaded the first set of combos into Korra’s focus mitts.

“Dude your parents are goals. I can only hope to find someone that will keep up with my sex drive at fifty.”

“Can we please not talk about this anymore? You owe me four more sets.”

Kuvira again reset her stance and unloaded her final sets.

“Good. Give me a 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, combo, six sets.”

Exhaling, Kuvira released the five-punch combo in flurries stopping only when she heard the timer go off.

“Nice! I think you even threw in an extra set in there. You’re looking good Vira, I think you’re gonna wipe the floor with Akari tomorrow.”

Smirking Kuvira grabbed a towel from a nearby bench and began wiping her face.

“Yeah, I think so too. But of course, I don’t have much to worry about anyways because you know all of those bums in the Northwest Precinct are softies anyways.”

Korra chuckled as she peeled her focus mitts off.

“Ha. That’s true. But this win gets you one step closer to that grand prize money.”

“Please. You don’t care if I get the money, you just want the reduced gym membership for the winning precinct.”

Korra stopped packing her gym bag for a moment and glanced up at the ceiling as if she was in deep thought.

“Hmm…I mean…can’t both be true?”

Kuvira threw her towel at Korra, as Korra died from laughter.

“Asshole!”

“You know I’m just teasing. But seriously I think you’ve got a real shot a winning the whole thing and I’m gonna be right there at every turn cheering you on.”

“You better.”

As Kuvira draped her gym bag across her body, she harbored a concerned expression on her face.

“Hey Kor, you know there’s a strong possibility that Mako will be there tomorrow right?”

Korra folded her arms and nodded her head.

“Yeah, I know.”

“Is that gonna be ok with you?”

“Of course, it will. I’m coming to support _you_. I could give two fucks about Mako.”

“Alright fair enough, but if that bastard tries anything and I mean anything you let me know.”

Korra smirked at her friend.

“Vira, I doubt very much that you’ll abandon your fight in the ring to start a brawl outside of the ring.”

“Ten years of friendship and you still don’t know me well enough to know that that is EXACTLY what I would do.”

Laughing Korra, draped her gym bag over her shoulder and walk towards her friend.

“Well Kevin Costner, your bodyguard services won’t be necessary. I think I can handle myself.”

Kuvira shrugged.

“Suit yourself. Ready to go?”

“Nah I’m gonna hang back for a few more minutes. Thanks to you I now have this disturbing image of my parents having sex in my head. I’m gonna go bang my head against a heavy bag, and hope that does the trick.”

Kuvira chuckled.

“I’m telling you we should all aspire to be like your parents one day. I’m gonna call Senna in the morning and ask her how she maintains her flexibility.”

“AAAAAH! No more talking! Get the hell out of here!”

Laughing hysterically, Kuvira headed towards the door with a wave of her hand.

Shaking her head, Korra made her way to the heavy bags, and stopped in her tracks. There she was. Pounding away at a heavy bag, exhaling with every punch. She’d pulled her long black hair into a ponytail and wore black leggings and a red tank top. She must’ve felt Korra’s eyes on her because she suddenly stopped punching the heavy bag and met Korra’s gaze with those vibrant emerald eyes.

“Hi, umm, is something wrong?”

Remembering herself, Korra blinked and shook her head.

“No not at all, it’s just, I wasn’t expecting anyone else to be down here that’s all. Don’t stop on my account.”

Asami nodded her head and resumed her workout.

Walking past her, Korra decided to work on the heavy bag adjacent to Asami. She placed her gym bag on the floor against the wall and fished out her boxing gloves. Once she got them secure, she walked over to the heavy bag and began her workout with a few light jabs.

The tension in the air was palpable. How was she meant to finish her workout with all of this awkward energy in the room? Forget it. Who needs a distraction anyway? Now that she’s had another awkward encounter with Asami, this will likely trump any other awkward moment that she’s had in the past few hours and give her mind something else to obsess over.

Releasing a deep sigh, she lightly pushed the heavy bag and turned on her heel to pack her gym bag. As she was taking her gloves off, she felt a tap on her shoulder. Turning her head, her gaze fell on Asami, who was nervously biting her lip, and playing with her class ring.

“Hi.”

“Hey. Everything ok?”

“No,” Asami replied. “But I’d like to change that.”

Nodding her head, Korra quickly stuffed her gloves into her gym bag. Getting up she turned her body towards Asami, and then leaned her shoulder against the wall, with her hands behind her back. For the briefest second, Asami glanced down at her body, and then brought her gaze upward to meet her eyes.

“How can I help?” Korra asked.

Asami took a deep breath before responding.

“I know things are a little awkward between us because of Mako, but they don’t have to be. I’d really like for us to at least be able to come to the same gym without feeling as though there needs to be an ocean of distance between us.”

Korra quirked her mouth upward and nodded her head.

“I agree. Do you have any suggestions?”

“I do,” Asami said with a smirk.

Korra suddenly began to feel warm. Does the owner have the A/C on a timer or something? Does it cut off after a certain time? Not wanting to appear uncomfortable, Korra licked her lips and released a calming breath.

“Well, I’m all ears,” Korra said with a smile.

“I think we simply need to break the ice. There’s no reason at all why we shouldn’t become acquainted with one another. Who knows,” Asami said with a shrug, “we may even come to like each other.”

Korra nodded her head as she considered Asami’s proposal.

“Alright. I’m game. Did you want me to tell you my whole life story, or are you looking for specifics?”

Asami quirked her eyebrow.

“Actually, I had something a bit more interesting in mind.”

“Ok?”

Asami bit her lip before continuing.

“Tell me a secret.”

“Huh?”

“Tell me a secret. It doesn’t have to be anything super incriminating, just something small yet embarrassing enough to keep to yourself.”

Korra stared at Asami in astonishment. She certainly wasn’t expecting this. Yet, she had to admit that this was definitely one hell of an ice breaker.

“You first,” Korra said.

“That’s fair,” replied Asami.

Asami folded her arms as she looked up at the ceiling in thought.

“Well, I’ve never read any of the Harry Potter books.”

Korra quirked an eyebrow at Asami.

“Seriously? Not even as a kid?”

Asami shook her head.

“Nope. I was too busy building robots and model cars.”

“So, what did you do when everyone else was going around saying which house they’d live in?”

Asami shrugged.

“What could I do? I had no idea what any of it meant. So, for the most part I just smiled and nodded. Although I’ve had several people tell me that I’m Ravenclaw, whatever the hell that means.”

Korra chuckled.

“I don’t know, from this travesty alone, I’m starting to pick up Slytherin vibes from you.”

“Should I be offended by that?”

Korra shrugged.

“Probably, but I guess you’ll have to read the books to find out.”

Asami chuckled.

“So, what about you?”

“Me? Oh, I’m Gryffindor all the way.”

Asami rolled her eyes and shook her head.

“No, silly, I meant what’s your secret.”

“Ah. Well…I actually have a similar shame. I’ve never seen any of the Godfather movies.”

Asami jerked her head back in surprise.

“Really? And where were YOU when everyone else was doing a deep dive into classic movies?”

Korra shrugged.

“I was having my own deep dive. But instead of starting in the 70s, I back tracked through the early 2000s, the 90s, and by the time I got to the 80s, I just got stuck there.’

Asami stared at Korra for a while before shaking her head.

“I…have no words.”

“Yeah, you and everyone else I share that with. Like you, after a while, I just smiled and nodded whenever a Godfather reference came up in conversation.”

“The travesty.”

“Well…now you know my secret shame. Although I have to say I feel like your secret is the bigger travesty. I mean you at least saw the movies, right?”

Asami shook her head.

“Nope. Can’t say that I have.”

“This is truly a sad day indeed. Give me your phone.”

Asami gazed back at Korra bewildered, but she complied anyway, rummaging through her gym bag until she found her phone.

“What do you need this for?”

Taking Asami’s phone, Korra began to tap her thumbs on the screen.

“I’m putting my number in your phone. Whenever you’re back in the gym next week, shoot me a text to remind me to bring Book 1 of the series. After that feel free to call me at any time should you feel the need to express how incredibly awesome Harry Potter is.”

Asami snorted as she took her phone back.

“I doubt that last bit will be necessary, but I very much appreciate the invitation. Oh! Here let me give you mine.”

Korra waved her hand.

“No need I shot a text to myself once I put my number in your phone. I’ll lock you in when I get home.”

Asami smiled as she nodded her head.

“Fair enough. Well, I guess we’ve officially broken the ice. Can I look forward to seeing you next week then?”

Korra shot Asami a crooked smile.

“Absolutely.”

“Excellent.”

Putting her phone back in her gym bag, Asami took one final look a Korra before winking at her and turning on her heel.

“See you around Korra,” she called over her shoulder.

“Have a good night Asami,” Korra replied.

Ignoring the butterflies in her stomach and the scorching temperature inside the gym, she draped her gym bag across her body, and walked out of the gym and into the night.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't you just love Senna's pearls of wisdom? 
> 
> Next chapter Asami gets her race, and Korra has a run in with Mako...


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guys! So this chapter kind of took on a life of its own. Before I knew it I'd pretty much written two chapters in one. So because there's SO MUCH that happens in this chapter, I thought it best to split it out. Hopefully it's worth the wait! As always thanks for reading!

It was pitch black in the gym with the exception of the warm light that peeked through the doorways of the locker rooms. The mats were cleaned and neatly stacked away. The dumbbells and resistance bands were all returned to their proper places. For the most part the gym was deserted.

For the most part.

In the far-left corner of the room, behind the neatly stacked floormats near the shadow boxing area, Asami had Korra pinned against the floor-to-ceiling mirror. Her hands were firmly gripping Korra’s wrists above her head while her tongue explored the depths of her delectable mouth. Their movements were slow and sensual, yet her heart was on the verge of beating out of her chest coursing adrenaline to every part of her body. She wanted Korra. She wanted every last bit of her, and she would spend the rest of the night exploring every inch of her body until she had her fill.

She slowly withdrew her tongue from Korra’s mouth and proceeded to nip and suck her soft and full lips. The sounds of their lips smacking were amplified in the relative silence of the empty room, and Asami’s arousal gradually intensified. She let go of one of Korra’s hands, and slowly trailed her hand downwards briefly cupping the side of her face, to deepen their kiss. Korra moaned in response while using her free hand to lightly caress the side of Asami’s body with her fingertips leaving a trail of electricity in their wake. When she settled on her soft ass, Korra squeezed Asami’s cheeks rapaciously, earning a breathy sigh from Asami. Releasing a husky groan from the back of her throat, Korra pulled Asami’s hips closer to the junction of her thighs and kissed her back with equal fervor. The contact sent a direct line to Asami’s core, saturating the heart of her femininity.

“Shit Korra,” Asami panted between kisses. “You’re driving me insane.”

Korra smiled against Asami’s lips before taking her bottom lip between her teeth and lightly tugging it.

“Mmm…That’s not the only thing I want to do to you.”

Asami’s body shuddered at Korra’s words while her mind reeled thinking of all of the possibilities. There was a part of her that wanted Korra to do _everything_ to her. To take her over and over again, until they were both nothing but spent on the gym floor. Yet only a small part of her wanted this. A very small part. For now, Asami wanted to be the one in control, and Asami _always_ got what she wanted. In a bold display of dominance, Asami grabbed Korra by her hair and tilted her neck to the side licking a long and wet trail from Korra’s collarbone to her jawline. Lightly tugging her earlobe, Asami placed another kiss on her jawbone before seductively whispering in Korra’s ear.

“You seem to be under the impression that you’re in control here. But right now, I’ve got you right where I want you. “

Korra shivered as Asami’s cool breath tickled her earlobe. Feeling Korra tremble beneath her made Asami’s chest swell with confidence and she couldn’t help but smile against her scorching hot skin. Feeling playful, she began to feather butterfly kisses from her jaw to her chin, before flicking her tongue against Korra’s bottom lip.

Korra’s ocean blue eyes were blazing as she stared back at Asami. Asami could tell that the same primal desire that coursed through her body, permeated Korra’s as well. For a split second Asami could feel the slightest resistance from Korra’s secured hand, and the cognizance made her curl her lips into a mischievous grin.

“You look like you want something,” she said as she freed her hand from Korra’s strands. Using a featherlight touch, Asami grazed her fingertips down her neck, and over her beautifully formed breasts, before stopping at her rock-hard abs. The urge to run her tongue across Korra’s midriff was overwhelming. Their close proximity created a sweltering heat that caused several rivulets of sweat to cascade down the length of her stomach, and Asami wanted to taste every drop. Biting her lip, she brought her eyes upward and focused her gaze on Korra’s face.

Korra looked as if she was in a state of bliss. Her eyes were closed as she leaned her head against the mirror and bit her lip.

“Mmm…I do,” she replied as she opened her eyes and gave Asami a smug smirk.

“But you got me, right?” Korra asked as she moved her free hand from Asami’s ass to the nape of her neck. Pulling her in closer, she brushed her lips across her cheeks, and whispered in her ear.

“So, what are you going to do with me Ms. Sato?”

Before she could respond she was distracted by an incredibly annoying beeping sound that echoed throughout the room. What the hell is that? Where is it coming from? Looking around the gym she didn’t see anything that could have possibly been the source until her eyes fell on her gym bag. Is it her phone maybe? Looking back at Korra she pulled her into another scorching kiss before she reluctantly pulled away.

“Hold that thought,” she alluringly whispered.

Korra smirked back at her.

“You know for someone who’s supposed to be in control, you sure are easily distracted.”

Asami quirked her eyebrow and shot Korra a playful smirk.

“For what I have in store for you, I’d rather not be disturbed.”

Giving Korra a wink, she turned to walk towards the bench where her gym bag was resting. She was incredibly irritated. Why did she have to set her alarm to the world’s most annoying ringtone? And why did it have to go off _now_? Feeling around for the vibration of her phone, she finally grabbed it and fished it out of one of the side pockets of her bag. When she hit the “Stop” button on the alarm, she was surprised to see that nothing happened. Furrowing her eyebrows, she tapped “Stop” again, and again nothing happened.

What the hell? Was her screen frozen or something? She tried hitting the “Snooze” button and again nothing happened, if anything the alarm grew louder with each passing minute. Ugh! What the hell is going on? Officially out of ideas, she decided to just turn the phone off, yet the alarm continued to blare loudly throughout the gym.

“Ok this doesn’t make any sense,” she said, looking up at Korra.

But to her surprise Korra was gone. She was alone. In the middle of the gym, holding a possessed phone in her hand.

“Why can’t I turn this damn alarm off?!”

***

She woke with a start. The alarm on her phone blaring on the nightstand next to her. Releasing a fatigued sigh, she reached over and silenced her phone before tossing it on the opposite side of her bed. Taking another calming breath, she rested her head against the pillow and stared up at the ceiling. _Fuck_ that was intense. Where did that even come from? It wasn’t the first time she had a dream about Korra, but it was _definitely_ the most vivid.

Suddenly aware of the damp sheets that clung to her back she sat up right in her bed and ran her hand over the sheets. Damn. She’d have to do a round of laundry at some point this weekend. Looking down at the wet fabric of her night gown, she ran a hand through her sweaty strands and released a deep sigh. Her heart was still racing. She could still remember the way Korra’s lips felt on hers. Reaching up she traced her lips with the tips of her fingers and closed her eyes, wishing she could savor the memory. She couldn’t remember the last time she had such a vivid dream. Well excluding the nightmares, she had about her mother of course. The sounds of a gunshot echoed in her mind. Asami quickly shook the thought from her mind.

No.

That’s not how we’re going to start off the day. Grabbing her phone off the nightstand again she took note of the time. 5:00 AM. Surely, she was the only one in the world up at this time of morning. Getting out of bed she removed the sheets from the bed and wrapped them into a ball. Walking through the adjoining master bathroom, she went straight to the walk-in closet, and thew her sheets, along with her nightgown into the laundry basket. Reaching for the shelf above her head, she grabbed a fresh towel and wash cloth, and sat them on the towel rack next to the walk-in shower. She stepped into the shower and turned the water on, welcoming the initial bite of cold water as it sprinkled her warm skin.

***

When she stepped out of the elevator, the entire floor was pitch black. Glancing at the time again, she jerked her head back in surprise. 6:00 AM. Geez, she couldn’t remember the last time she beat Opal into the office. Something might be wrong with her after all. Walking over to the wall in front of Opal’s desk, she flipped several switches, and the entire floor lit up under the glow of the fluorescent lights.

Heading over to the kitchen she grabbed a “Breakfast Blend” K-cup from the cabinet and placed her favorite mug under the Keurig dispenser. While she waited for the Keurig to power up, she opened another cabinet to grab the organic sugar, and set it on the counter in front of the Keurig. She then went over to the fridge to grab the French Vanilla Coffee mate creamer and set it next to the sugar on the counter. Once her coffee finished brewing, she absentmindedly added the sugar and cream, and allowed her mind to aimlessly wander back to the images from her dream.

The heat of Korra’s body against hers. Korra’s hands caressing her body. The heated look in her blue eyes as she smirked sinfully at her. The thought alone made Asami wet all over again. Biting her lip, she took a deep breath before grabbing her coffee and heading into her office. She turned on the lights in her office and placed her coffee on her desk and shrugged out of her coat. Placing her coat on the coat rack to the left of her desk, she walked over to her window and took a moment to look out at the incredible view of the Seattle skyline. The sun wouldn’t be up for another hour and a half, so the sky was still pretty dark. Yet, the glowing lights of the city below burned bright enough for Asami to clear her mind and settle her heartrate.

Minutes later she heard the sound of the elevator doors opening and Opal’s heels clacking against the marble floors.

“Asami?”

Turning around, Asami saw Opal standing in the doorway staring at her with a perplexed look on her face. Asami offered her friend a small smile.

“Morning,” she said.

Opal took a moment to put her purse and coffee down on her desk and walked further into Asami’s office.

“What are you doing here so early? Is everything alright?”

Asami stepped away from the window to lean against the front of her desk, stretching an arm across her body to grab her elbow.

“Yeah, I’m fine. Just woke up a little earlier than usual that’s all.”

Opal took another step towards Asami harboring a look of concern on her face.

“Sami, you never beat me into the office. And when you do, it’s usually because you’ve had a nightmare about your mom.”

Asami flinched at the mention of her mother. She should have known Opal would make this deduction. Opal and Bolin were probably the only two people in the world who knew about the nightmares she had about her mom. She could never bring herself to go into detail about them, but they knew enough to know that they were beyond disturbing and would have a major effect on her mood and productivity the following day.

Asami was only six years old at the time, but the day her mother died would be one she would never forget. Her father was away on a three-day business trip, so it was just her and her mother in the Sato mansion. Her mother was getting her ready for bed when they heard a loud crash downstairs. Not missing a beat, her mother ushered her into the closet, and told her to make herself invisible. Asami remembered begging her mother to hide in the closet with her, but her mother only kissed her forehead, and told her not to come out no matter what she heard. When her mother closed the closet door behind her, Asami sank to the floor and pressed her back against the wall, doing all she could to follow her mother’s orders. She heard what sounded like something being propped up against the door, and moments later the sound of multiple footsteps coming up the stairs.

She could hear her mother talking calmly but firmly with the intruders telling them that they could have what they wanted as long as they left. The intruders laughed in response and told her that that was exactly what they were planning to do. Eventually they broke the door down and shuffled into the room. Asami again heard her mother tell them to leave their house, but before she could finish her sentence, she heard a loud slap, and the sound of her mother gasping in pain. She couldn’t make out what followed afterwards, but from what she could gather, her mother was putting up one hell of a fight. She heard one intruder cry out in pain and another, sounded as if he was being pushed against the wall, but the sound that came after would haunt Asami for the rest of her life. In the midst of all of the shuffling and muffled screams, there came a loud gunshot that reverberated throughout the house. The deafening silence that followed was eventually interrupted with the sounds of frantic voices and retreating feet.

Asami sat on the closet floor with both hands over her mouth, shivering uncontrollably and quietly sobbing to herself. Seconds, minutes, maybe even hours passed before Asami finally found the courage to reach up and grab the doorknob of her closet door. As she slowly opened the door of her closet, a piercing cry fell from her lips. To her horror, her mother was lying face down on the floor in a pool of her own blood. Asami recalled rushing to her mother and father’s room to grab her mother’s phone to dial 911. Once the authorities confirmed that they were on their way, she took a seat on the floor next to her mother and firmly held her mother’s hand hand against her cheek until help arrived.

She would later find out from her father that he kept a gun in a hidden compartment behind their bed. To this day Asami always wondered why her mother never thought to run into the master bedroom to grab it. Did she not know how to use it? Did she think that she wouldn’t have enough time? Whatever the reason, she tried not to dwell on it. Thinking back on “what-ifs” and “maybes” only brought more grief.

“Asami? Are you alright?”

The sound of Opal’s voice brought her back to the present as she blinked and shook the awful memories of her childhood out of her mind.

“Yes, Opal I’m fine,” she said as she walked around her desk to fire up her computer.

Opal approached Asami’s desk and casually leaned against it.

“You don’t look fine. Do you want to take a half day today? I can clear your schedule, and you, me, and Bolin can all go down to racetrack to blow off some steam.”

Asami’s ears perked up at the mention of the racetrack. Of course! How could she forget? Today’s the day of the race, and it couldn’t have come on a better day. A race was exactly what she needed to get her life back on track.

“No Opal that won’t be necessary. I’m fine really. I promise, I didn’t have a nightmare about my mom last night.”

Opal stared at Asami with a confused look on her face.

“So why the heck are you in so early? Don’t tell me you wanted to catchup on work, because you usually stay late for that.”

Asami smirked at her friend.

“You think you know me so well huh?”

Opal shrugged.

“Well, I’d like to think so, especially since you pay me to schedule your entire life.”

“Well how much time did you set aside for this conversation? Because I think we can get a few minutes back.”

“Lucky for you this is a free block for the both of us, so you have me for at least an hour. Now spill. What in the world got you up at this ungodly hour?”

Asami released an exasperated sigh.

“Ok before I tell you, you have to promise me that this is a judgement free zone.”

“Of course! When have you ever known me to judge?”

Asami stared impassively at Opal as she folded her arms.

“Junior year in college, when I was going through my party girl phase.”

“You have no idea what you’re like when you’re drunk do you?”

“I’m sure I have no idea what you’re talking about.”

“My point exactly.”

“You know what forget it,” Asami said as she rolled her eyes.

Opal quickly raised her hands in surrender.

“Okay! Okay. You win. I promise this is a judgement free zone.”

Asami sighed and pursed her lips, before deciding to continue.

“I may or may not have been dreaming about Korra these past few nights.”

“Pfft. Is that all? There’s no shame in that. This has been an eventful week for the both of you, so it’s only natural that she’d be on your mind.”

“Well, that’s what I thought too, but then last night happened…”

Opal quirked an eyebrow.

“What happened last night?”

Asami shifted in her seat and crossed her legs. Ugh, she felt so silly! Why did she offer this up to Opal in the first place?

“Well…” Asami started. “I ran into her at the gym last night, and we talked for a bit.”

Opal jerked her head back in surprise.

“Really? About what?”

Asami shrugged.

“Nothing too serious. I just thought it’d be a good idea to break the ice. So, I told her about my secret shame of never having read the Harry Potter books, and she told me that she’s never seen the God Father. We exchanged numbers and went our separate ways.”

“Okay. Not hearing anything super concerning so far…”

“But then…” Asami hesitated. “When I went to bed last night, I had this _really_ intense dream about her.”

“How intense?”

“Making out against a mirror intense.”

“Hmm…”

Asami rolled her eyes.

“Really? You have nothing else to say?”

Opal shrugged.

“I mean what else is there to say?”

“Literally _anything_ else.”

Opal sighed.

“Well. On the one hand, this could all be one big coincidence. You’re working crazy hours prepping for the Expo, you found out your ex-boyfriend was cheating on you with a woman who’s…what did you call her? gorgeous?”

Asami narrowed her eyes.

“I really hate you.”

Opal smirked as she raised her hands in a defensive manner.

“Just making sure I have my facts straight,” she said with a giggle. “And by the way when was the last time you got laid?”

Asami crossed her legs while clearing her throat.

“I don’t feel the need to disclose that information as I fail to see how it relates to this conversation.”

Opal chuckled.

“Damn. That long, huh? Well at any rate, all of this could play into why you had that dream last night.”

Asami nodded her head as she considered her friend’s words.

“And on the other hand?”

Opal shrugged.

“On the other hand… it could be something else.”

Asami released an irritated sigh.

“Something else like what?”

“Not sure yet. Something…more?”

Asami groaned.

“Since when are you so cryptic?”

“Well, I’m still taking everything into consideration. Like I said it’s been a crazy week for you. But then at the same time…I’ve known you since college, and in all of that time you’ve never described anyone you’re attracted to as “gorgeous” or “intense”, let alone have dreams about them.”

Asami’s heart skipped a beat at the possibility of more with Korra. The idea… _excited_ her. What the hell was wrong with her? Opal was right. She’d never gone through anything like this with any of her past lovers. Great. Now she’s describing Korra as a lover. Get a grip Sato! In an attempt to cover up just how right Opal was, she cleared her throat and regarded her friend coolly.

“Are you saying that I’m attracted to Korra?”

Opal arched an eyebrow at her friend.

“Are you saying that you’re not?”

Asami opened her mouth as if she was about to say something and then shut it again.

“Exactly. So, considering the fact that you _are_ indeed attracted to Korra, and at the very least she clearly has an impact on your sleeping patterns. It could be the beginning of something that’s worth exploring. In either case, I think it’s best to just let things play out. Who knows maybe at the end of the day you’ll hate her guts, and we can chalk this all up to an overworked and undersexed Sami.”

Asami closed her eyes as she leaned back into her chair and shook her head.

“God, I hate you.”

Opal laughed hysterically as she rose from Asami’s desk.

“You love me,” Opal said with a smile. “So, are you gonna need some more alone time, or are you ready to get an early start on the day?”

Asami sighed as she rolled her chair closer to her computer.

“Might as well kick things off now. Did you ever make copies of the presentation I sent you yesterday for the Department Head meeting?”

“Yep, they’re on my desk. Also don’t forget you’ve got that meeting at 9am with the folks over at the convention center to discuss the particulars of the expo.”

“Got it. Thank you, Opal, for everything,” Asami said with a smile.

“No worries boss, let me know if you need anything else.”

As Asami watched Opal leave, she released another sigh. Maybe Opal was right. Maybe it was best to just let things play out. It’s very likely that she’s just getting worked up over nothing, and that this was just a result of stress. As a matter of fact, this whole thing will be moot as soon as the sun goes down.

Grabbing her burner phone from her purse, she quickly checked to see if there was a message from her handler. Nothing. That’s fine. It was still early, and she had a lot of work to get through. With any luck she’d get through it quickly and be able to grab a nap before the race tonight. Maybe she’d even have another pleasant dream. Asami smirked at the thought as she stroked her fingers from her long neck to the valley of her breasts. Stop it! You’re at work! Shaking her head, she quickly pushed the thought away, and powered up her computer. Just get through the day Sato. Just get through the day.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Guys....the anxiety I had over this chapter! If it didn't go over well we can totally scrap it and pretend it never happened. Cool? Cool.
> 
> And I know, I know. We didn't get to see Asami's race or Korra's run in with Mako, but it's coming soon! Just bear with me! 
> 
> If you made it to the end thanks for reading!


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey Guys! I really appreciate you guys being so patient with me. I'm trying really hard to maintain a consistent update schedule but often times life gets in the way (Adulting am I right?). Anywho I had a lot of fun writing this one and I hope you guys have just as much fun reading it. As always thank you so much for reading!

Her heavy eye lids were slow to open as the sound of her alarm echoed on the edge of her subconscious. The morning light peaked through her window, and with every passing second, she was becoming more and more aware of the world outside of her apartment. The sounds of birds chirping, cars passing, and dogs barking were quickly emerging to the forefront of her consciousness and she groaned at the annoyance of it all. She was trying, _really_ trying to stay asleep. Partly because she was still exhausted from the events of the week, but also because the dream she was having was so fucking hot that she didn’t want it to end. The feel of soft lips against hers, the bittersweet sting of manicured nails being raked across her back, the memory alone sent chills up her spine.

Reaching over to grab her phone off the nightstand, she quickly turned off her alarm, and placed her phone back where she found it. Rolling over she released a heavy sigh and stared up at the ceiling. Was it normal to have such intense dreams about someone you just met? And where the fuck is all of this sexual frustration coming from? Well…she knew the answer to that. Even though it had only been two months since Mako, they didn’t exactly have the best sexual chemistry. She was never fully satisfied with their love making and it always hurt a little when she lied. In the beginning sex with Mako was exciting and fun. As time went on however, Korra found herself wondering if Mako had forgotten how sex works. Closing her eyes, she shook her head at the memory. If she were to be completely honest with herself, sex with Mako was about as exciting as watching paint dry.

Sex with Asami however, even if only in a dream, was passionate and _intense_. She couldn’t help but wonder what their love making might be like in real life. Jerking her head back, Korra considered the audacity of her train of thought. Was she attracted to her ex-boyfriend’s mistress? As if on command, images of Asami came inherently to mind. Asami staring back at her from below the sparing ring, Asami nervously biting her lip, Asami winking at her before walking away. Korra groaned as she grabbed a pillow and placed it in between her legs, hoping it would ease the yearning she felt in her core. Fuck. Ok there might be a small possibility. As she began to conjure up more images from her dream, she instinctively she shook her head.

Nope. We’re not going down that rabbit hole. Her life was already complicated enough without adding anything else on top of it. Besides all of this is probably one big coincidence.

Taking another deep breath, she forced herself to sit upright and positioned herself on the edge of the bed. As she peeled herself from the sheets, she instantly took notice of the cool air against the back of her damp tank top. She looked across the room and saw Naga lying in her bed staring back at her wagging her tail in anticipation. As soon as Korra’s feet touched the cool hardwood floors, Naga jumped out of her bed and immediately ran up to Korra to put her head in her lap. Smiling down at her friend, Korra gently scratched her behind the ears and patted her on the head. She’d almost forgotten how nice it was to wake up to another body in the house.

“Good Morning to you too girl. Guess you’re ready for your walk huh?”

As if in response, Naga removed her head from Korra’s lap and trotted out of the bedroom and into the living room to patiently wait for her owner at the front door. Rising from the bed Korra stretched her limbs and sauntered over to the dresser to grab a pair of socks. She then walked over to the closet to grab her SpongeBob hoodie (which happened to go perfectly with her SpongeBob pajama pants), and her running shoes. Once she finished dressing, she grabbed her phone from the nightstand, and headed to the kitchen.

When she reached the kitchen, she briefly scanned the room for her wallet, keys, and Naga’s leash, and was relieved to find them all sitting on the breakfast bar. She stuffed her wallet and keys into the pouch of her hoodie and bent down to attach the leash to Naga’s collar. Giving one final look around the room, she walked out of the door and locked the door behind her.

***

The locker rooms at the Seattle Boxing gym were unconventional to say the least. It was pretty much an open space with a single line of black lockers on either side of the room. There were three long wooden benches that sat in front of the lockers on both sides. Under normal circumstances the openness of the locker rooms would have been a cause for concern. However, Seattle PD had reserved this venue for the entire weekend, and the fights from the men’s and women’s division were scheduled far enough away from each other that there wouldn’t be an issue with the men and the women changing together. With the women’s match scheduled to start at 7pm, Korra had agreed to pick Kuvira up from the station at 5:00pm so that they could be at the gym at 6:30pm to go through her pre-fight warmups and rituals.

When they arrived, they spent five mins doing speed rope work, ten minutes shadow boxing and ten minutes on the focus mitts. With five minutes until starting time, they began to make their way to the ring.

“How ya feeling Vira?”

Kuvira slammed her gloves together and began bouncing from one leg to the other.

“I feel pretty good actually. I’ve got a little bit of anxiety, but I think it’s just pre-fight excitement.”

Korra nodded her head in understanding.

“I get that. Remember, this chick may be a pushover, but she’s got a quick left, so be sure to watch your right.”

Kuvira nodded and slammed her gloves again.

“Yup. Got it.”

Korra suddenly grabbed Kuvira by the arm and turned her so that they were eye to eye.

“One last thing. It’s very important.”

Kuvira blinked at Korra, for an instant but stared at her intently. Korra took a deep breath and stared back at her friend with a serious look on her face.

“When you’re out there in that ring, remember that the fate of your best friend’s gym membership rests in your hands.”

Kuvira snorted and pushed Korra away.

“Gee thanks asshole, I’ll try to keep that in mind.”

Korra giggled as she gave her friend a pat on the back.

“I’m just making sure your head’s in the game. Can’t have you out there focused on the wrong things, can I?”

“You are truly a saint.”

Korra released a soft chuckle before directing her gaze to center ring, where the referee and the MC took their places. Looking past the ring she took note of the size of the crowd and was momentarily taken aback. To her surprise it looked as if the entire police department had shown up for the fight, which filled her with both dread and excitement. On one hand she was excited that word of her friend’s fighting skills had travelled so quickly throughout every precinct of the city. It gave her a sense of pride to see her friend gain notoriety within the department. On the other hand, if the entire department was here, that meant that a certain ex-boyfriend was here as well and the thought of running into him vexed her.

She shook her head in an attempt to drive the thought away. Tonight, wasn’t about her. She was here to support Vira, and anything else beyond that didn’t matter. Looking up she noticed the speakers that were mounted at the top of every other column in the gym, and briefly wondered no one thought to put any music on.

“You know it’d be pretty awesome, if they’d let us use the sound system in here,” Korra said. “You could have walked out to ‘Eye of the Tiger’.”

Kuvira shot Korra an expressionless look.

“That’s such a cliché. I’d totally come out to the theme song of Rocky though.”

Korra snorted.

“And how is that not a cliché?”

“Because it’s a fucking classic that’s why not!”

Korra was about to open her mouth in reply when she heard the feedback from the MC’s microphone.

“ _LADIES AND GENTLEMEN WELCOME TO SEATTLE PD’S SECOND ANNUAL BOXING COMPETITION_!”

Korra glanced back at Kuvira and shrugged.

“Guess we can debate about your song choice later.”

Kuvira nodded her head and proceeded to shake out her limbs. Korra grabbed the silky hood of Kuvira’s green and silver boxing robe and draped it over her head.

“Try not to concuss the poor girl,” Korra said with a smirk.

Kuvira only shrugged.

“Can’t make any promises.”

“ _LADIES AND GENTLEMEN! GIVE IT UP FOR KUVIIIIIIIIIIIRRRRAAAAAA!”_

The gym echoed with applause and hoots from the crowd as Kuvira climbed into the ring. As she watched her friend circle the ring raising her glove to greet the crowd, she took a moment to size up Kuvira’s opponent. The other woman stood at 5’7” and had an athletic frame with broad shoulders. She wore an orange sports bra, with blue shorts, and her black hair was pulled back in a single braid that came down to the middle of her back. Her demeaner seemed calm and focused.

Korra had heard the rumors of Akari’s prowess in the ring. Akari was known for dancing her way out of sticky situations, and once she got her opponent past the point of exhaustion, she’d unleash a flurry of combos to send her opponent crashing to the canvas. Those rumours didn’t worry Korra at all. After having trained with Kuvira over the past few days, she was confident that her friend possessed the conditioning required to last all ten rounds.

Once Kuvira made her way to her designated corner, the MC introduced Akari, who received a welcoming round of applause from the crowd as well. After Akari had done her initial lap around the ring, the two fighters met in the center of the ring and touched gloves. Korra looked over at her friend’s corner to try to gauge Kuvira’s state of mind. When their eyes locked, Korra gave her a nod, and Kuvira nodded back with a small smirk that only Korra could notice.

_Ding! Ding!_

The bell to start the first round sounded, and Korra folded her arms and stood in a wide stance to brace herself for the action.

***

_Ding! Ding!_

The bell to end the fifth round had sounded and both fighters walked over to their respective corners. Overall, Korra was pleased with Kuvira’s performance. There were moments early on were Akari left herself wide open for an assault. Initially Korra was annoyed with her friend for not capitalizing on those opportunities. However, as the fight went on Korra began to catch on to her friend’s strategy. Had Kuvira taken those opportunities, the fight would have been over in the second round, and she likely would have missed out on any round-based incentives. Not to mention there probably would’ve been a lot of disappointed police officers who came primarily to blow of some steam.

Still, Kuvira managed to put on quite a performance. Every step she took, every punch she threw was calculated and timed perfectly. Akari on the other hand, seemed…off? Her usual tactics weren’t working as well as they usually did with other opponents. Korra decided that this was probably in no small part due to Kuvira’s patience. The punches that Akari did throw were either dodged or blocked by Kuvira, and Korra could tell that Akari was getting tired.

Korra flicked her eyes to Kuvira’s corner to check on her friend. When their eyes met again, Korra gave her a thumbs up with a questioning look in her eyes. Kuvira simply smiled back and nodded, beating a glove against her chest. Korra returned her friends smile and nodded. Stealing a glance at the other corner, Korra tilted her head in Akari’s direction and gave Kuvira the same questioning look. Pursing her lips Kuvira rolled her eyes and shook her head. Korra chuckled in response. Kuvira’s look confirming the assumptions they shared earlier in the week. Akari was an overhyped pushover. 

_Ding! Ding!_

The bell to start the 6th round had sounded and Korra braced herself for another round of action. The two fighters danced around the ring, with their guards up, both trying to find an opening. Kuvira landed two quick jabs to the body, and a nasty two punch combo to the face. Akari took a few steps back and tried to land a few jabs of her own, but Kuvira blocked them easily and countered with two hooks to the body. Akari winced at the contact, but still managed to breathe through it. Korra could sense the shift in Kuvira’s intensity and had no doubt that the fight wouldn’t go past the 7th round.

As she carefully watched the fighters trade blows, she suddenly became aware of another body in her space. What the hell? Why was this person so close? As she turned to get a look at the unwelcome intruder, her jaw clenched involuntarily, and her heart immediately began to palpitate. Piercing golden eyes stared back into hers, with his lips pressed together in a tight line. He wore black boots with navy blue jeans, and his hands were stuffed in the pockets of his black Seattle PD jacket with the name “Detective Mako” embroidered above his badge on the left side. Korra narrowed her eyes at him before returning her gaze back to the ring. Of course, he was here, and of course he thought it would be a good idea to talk in the middle of Kuvira’s fight. She resisted the urge to roll her eyes at the thought and kept her gaze impassive.

“Hey,” she heard him say. Korra cut her eyes at him again before sighing and looking back towards the ring.

“Hi,” she responded in a clipped tone.

Removing one of his hands from his pocket, he began to scratch the back of his neck. “I almost didn’t think you’d show up. You weren’t at any of Vira’s other fights.”

Korra snorted. “I didn’t know you were so concerned with my whereabouts.”

Mako lifted a shoulder while offering Korra a slight smile. “Just because we’re not together anymore doesn’t mean that I stopped caring about you.”

Korra chuckled wryly while shaking her head.

“You are so full of shit you know that?”

Mako blinked as he jerked his head back.

“What? What are you talking about? You don’t think I care about you?”

“Oh, I’m positive you don’t,” she said as she turned her body to face him.

Mako sighed as he closed his eyes and shook his head.

“How could you say that after everything we’ve been through together? I mean sure things didn’t work out between us romantically, but at the end of the day I thought we could at least say that we cared for one another.”

Korra folded her arms and regarded him coolly. “I thought so too. That is until two days ago when I ran into Bolin and the other woman you were seeing behind my back!”

Suddenly everything grew quiet. The people standing near them were looking everywhere but in their general direction, before eventually returning their attention to the fight. Mako licked his lips as he took a step towards Korra.

“Korra I never meant for you to find out that way. I –“

“You never meant for me to find out that way, or you never meant for me to find out at all?”

Mako paused briefly, considering the question, while Korra glared at him with piercing eyes.

“Look, I just…I didn’t want to cause you anymore pain. And no matter how many times I went over how to tell you in my head nothing ever seemed good enough.”

Korra exhaled through her nose and shook her head. Was he fucking serious? First, he picks a fight with her in a very public place. Then he tells her that he didn’t want to cause her anymore pain, and to that end he thought it better to lie to her. What did she ever see in this asshole? Shaking her head, she turned her attention away from Mako and back to the fight.

Mako went to reach for Korra before remembering himself and let his arm fall limply to his side. He opened his mouth and then closed it again, looking to the side as if he was trying to consider his next words carefully. Looking back at her he licked his lips again and took a deep breath.

“I’m really sorry Korra. I swear I was going to tell you. I was jus—”

“Looking for the right time?”

Mako scoffed.

“Korra I’m sor—”

“Sorry? Yeah, you mentioned that.” Korra turned her body towards Mako again, this time squaring her shoulders and folding her arms. “As a matter of fact, I’ve known just how _sorry_ you are for quite some time. You’re a sorry friend, you’re a sorry brother, and you’re definitely a sorry lover. Why don’t you tell me something I _don’t_ know, like why you cheated in the first place!”

Mako clinched his jaw and pulled his gaze away from Korra blinking his eyes as he did. Korra had never seen him look that way before. She’d never seen him look so hurt, so…vulnerable. Ugh! She was so conflicted! There was a part of her that wanted to urge Mako to talk about what he was feeling. He so rarely showed any emotion it would have been a shame to not take the opportunity to find out what actually went on in his head. Then again, seeing that pained look on his face made her want to apologize for hurting him. However, the bigger part of her wanted him to know exactly how she felt about being lied to for so long, and she was glad that she was able to do it without censoring herself.

Suddenly the crowd erupted into collective cheers and rounds of applause, around them. Korra looked towards the ring to see what was going on and was shocked to see Akari stretched out on the canvas. The referee kneeling over her body appeared to be three seconds into the long count.

Turning her gaze back to Mako, Korra sighed and wrapped her arms around herself. “Look Mako, maybe we shouldn’t be doing this right now. This definitely isn’t the time or place to talk about this.”

Still unable to look her in the eye, Mako stuffed his hands in the pockets of his jacket and nodded.

“Yeah,” he whispered. “I’ll uh, I’ll talk to you later.” He brushed passed her and made his way to the front door.

_Ding! Ding!_

The bell sounded and Korra looked towards the ring to see Akari getting checked out by her cut man, and Kuvira taking a victorious lap around the ring, shaking her hands in the air in triumph. When Kuvira got closer to where Korra was standing she spotted Korra and the bewildered look on her face. When their eyes met, Kuvira furrowed her brow, and stared intently at her friend. Not wanting Kuvira to make a scene, Korra vehemently shook her head and gave her a thumbs up.

Kuvira clenched her jaw, and her eyes darted in every direction until she found her target walking out of the front door. With long purposeful strides, she climbed out of the ring and pushed her way to the front door, peeling her gloves off as she went. Fully aware of her friend’s intentions Korra pushed her way to the front door to try to intercept Kuvira.

Once Kuvira reached the front door she threw her gloves on the ground and violently pushed the door open. Stepping out on the sidewalk she looked left and then right and began walking in that direction.

“Hey Asshole!” Kuvira called out.

Hearing the sound of Kuvira’s voice, Mako slowed his pace and glanced over his shoulder. Recognizing the figure walking towards him he stopped in his tracks and turned around to face her. As she got closer, he couldn’t help but notice the fury in her eyes, and as such he held his hands up in a defensive manner.

“Listen Vira, I didn’t mean to—”

Before he could finish the sentence, Kuvira unleashed a jab/hook combo directly to Mako’s face. The impact startled him and sent him staggering into a nearby wall. Kuvira clenched her fists as she stood across from him, her breathing ragged and heavy.

“I told you, didn’t I?” she started, through gritted teeth. “I told you a long time ago what would happen if you ever hurt her.”

“Vira—”

“STOP CALLING ME THAT! We aren’t family and we damn sure ain’t friends. The only reason you’re still _breathing_ right now is out of respect for _her_. Because I promised her that I wouldn’t hurt you.”

Wiping his nose, Mako forced himself off of the wall and glared into Kuvira’s eyes.

“Well,” he started as he spit blood out of his mouth. “If you have any more promises you’d like to break then you’d better get to it,” he said as he sniffed. “Because it looks like we’re running out of alone time.”

Right on cue, Korra came running down the sidewalk screaming at the top of her lungs.

“Vira! Vira don’t!”

Closing her eyes, Kuvira took a calming a breath. When she opened them again, she glared at Mako with piercing eyes.

“Get your cowardly, self-righteous, self-absorbed ass, into your shitty car and get the _fuck_ out of here. And if I hear that you’ve so much as breathed the same air as her, I promise you… a blackeye and a busted lip will be the _least_ of your worries.”

With his fists shaking at his sides, Mako spared Kuvira one final look, before turning on his heel and walking away. Moments later, Korra raced to Kuvira’s side and stared after Mako’s retreating figure.

“What happened? What did you say to him?” Korra asked frantically searching her friend’s eyes.

Kuvira shrugged.

“I simply told him to keep his distance.”

Korra raised a single eyebrow. “Simply? Rarely is anything simple with you Kuvira. Is that really all you said to him?”

“Of course, what makes you think otherwise?”

“Well, I don’t know, it could be the fresh blood on your hand wraps, or the fact that I saw Mako wipe his nose before getting off of the wall he was leaning on for dear life.”

Kuvira looked down at her hand and began flexing her fingers.

“Look the bastard had it coming alright? And if he goes crying to HR like a little bitch tomorrow morning, I’ll deal with it then.”

Korra released an exasperated sigh and threw her hands in the air.

“Vira! I told you that I’m perfectly capable of fighting my own battles. You didn’t need to--”

“Korra,” Kuvira warned. “It’s done, and yes it absolutely needed to be done.”

“Wha—”

“Now unless you guys have miraculously gotten back together while I was in the ring…”

“Wha? Of course not!”

“Then there’s no need to discuss this matter any further. Now are you going to take me out to celebrate or what?”

Korra opened her mouth and then closed it again. She turned her head in the direction that she saw Mako leaving, and sighed. Why was Vira like this? Mako was literally on his way out of the door. There was no need for her to escalate an already difficult situation. Perhaps she should count herself lucky that Mako didn’t sustain more serious injuries. That was probably a show of restraint on Kuvira’s part. Chuckling at the thought she shook her head. Now that she thought about it, things really could’ve been a lot worse. Looking back at her friend, she offered her a sly smile.

“Well, if we’re going to get shit-faced, let’s at least be responsible about it.”

Kuvira smirked. “Now we’re talking! What’d you have in mind?”

“Let’s go to the spirits store. We can pick up a few essentials, and then take it all back to my place and order a pizza. That way you can just crash on my couch after you’ve had your second drink.”

“Fuck off! Are you trying to say I’m a lightweight?”

“Are you trying to tell me that you don’t remember our senior prom?”

“That was one time!”

“And one cocktail.”

Kuvira chuckled softly. “Yeah ok, are you sponsoring this at home experience?”

“Of course,” Korra said with a smirk. “It’s your night. Congrats by the way.”

Kuvira scratched her cheek as she chuckled. “Thanks Kor.”

Still smiling at her friend, Korra motioned her hand toward the gym.

“Well come on!” she exclaimed. “We best get a move on. You only get party Korra for exactly two hours before I inevitably fall asleep.”

Kuvira shook her head before heading back to the gym.

“Damn Kor, when did you get so old?”

Korra shrugged. “Eh, around the time I went on unpaid leave.”

“Ah. I guess that makes sense. Apparently, sleep is super addicting when you’re getting it on a regular.”

Korra released a hearty chuckle.

“For a minute there it sounded like you were describing sex or something.”

“Pfft. Sex. Sleep. Tomato. Tomahto. It’s all the same when you aren’t getting either on a regular. I figured you’d know something about that.”

Approaching the door, Korra grabbed the handle and pulled it open, giving her friend an unimpressed look.

“I won’t dignify that with a response.”

Kuvira snorted. “Suit yourself, although I think no response is a response.”

Korra rolled her eyes.

“Just get your shit so we can go.”

Kuvira chuckled as she walked through the door grabbing her previously abandoned gloves from the floor. Following behind her, Korra watched Kuvira make her way to the locker rooms and decided to lean against a nearby wall while she waited. Tilting her head back she closed her eyes and exhaled through her nose. Why couldn’t she just have a normal day for once? Just one day where she didn’t find herself in the middle of a shit storm that Mako created. Shaking her head at the thought, she opened her eyes, and scanned the room. Most of the excitement from the fight had died down, and people were now congregating in different parts of the room. She was certain that they were talking about the fight, but she briefly wondered if anyone had caught a glimpse at the double-header that took place outside. Now that she thought about it, if people didn’t see Kuvira unload on Mako while they were outside, she was certain that they’d heard the epic blowout between her and Mako during the main event. She slumped to the floor and put her head in her hands with a groan. Getting wasted was beginning to sound better and better by the minute.

“Hey, you ready to go?”

Korra looked up to see Kuvira looking down at her with a concerned expression on her face. Korra smiled as she got to her feet.

“Yeah, let’s go.”

“Are you sure you’re up for this? We can hang out tomorrow…”

Korra shook her head fervently.

“No, no, no. We’re definitely doing this. If there was anyone in the world who desperately needed to get wasted right now, it’s me.”

“Yes! Party Korra is in the building!” Kuvira exclaimed as she danced her way out of the front door. “And the best part is I don’t have to worry about you ruining my buzz.”

Korra shot Kuvira a perplexed look.

“What the hell is that supposed to mean?”

“It means…that every time you get hammered you become _incredibly_ flirtatious, and then I’m left with the annoying task of guarding your phone.”

Korra giggled as they made their way to her car. “I won’t deny that. However, I can confidently say that I’ve never drunk dialed _or_ texted anyone that I wasn’t supposed to.”

“No,” Kuvira said as she opened the passenger door. “Just whoever it is, that you happen to be infatuated with at the time.”

Korra’s heart stopped as images of her dream came inadvertently to mind. Asami biting her lip, Asami’s eyes rolling in the back of her head, Asami’s open mouth as she came around Korra’s fingers. Korra bit her lip as a familiar chill went down her spine like a volt of electricity. Remembering herself she blinked and shook her head. What the hell is wrong with her? Clearing her throat, she got into the car, and turned the engine over. Once she and Kuvira were all buckled up, she checked her mirrors for oncoming traffic and eased out of her parking space and on to the road. When she glanced over at Kuvira, she caught a glimpse of her friend regarding her suspiciously.

“I don’t have anything to worry about, right?”

Korra chuckled softly as she returned her focus to the road.

“No Vira. Lucky for you, there’s no one on my radar at the moment.” On cue, an image of Asami flashing a mischievous grin suddenly danced across her mind.

Nope. No one at all.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Listen, when it comes to Kuvira there are two things you absolutely don't mess with...her food, or her BFF. LOL
> 
> Also while you're here, I wanted to take a moment to thank everyone who gave me a much needed boost after my last chapter. Seeing your comments gave me the push I needed to lock away my silly insecurities and just have fun with my writing. :) 
> 
> Anyway thanks again for reading, and I'll see you guys next time!


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